Personalized footballs have now become an established tradition at the gifting experience.Photo: Andrew Griswold
INDIANAPOLIS—This year, Indianapolis hosted the College Football Playoff National Championship game, which took place Jan. 10 at Lucas Oil Stadium. (ICYMI: Georgia beat Alabama.) The Indiana state capital was the first cold-weather city to host the event, which was attended by more than 68,000 fans.
Once again, Gifts for the Good Life collaborated with Allison Doughty, director of events and hospitality services for the College Football Playoff (CFP), to create a game-day gifting experience. Over the course of three days leading up to the big game, VIP guests and more visited the hospitality suite, which was outfitted with truckloads (literally) of swag, including personalized footballs—now an established tradition.
“We work very closely with our client [Allison Doughty], almost year-round, tossing ideas back and forth. Our brainstorming sessions start early and nothing is off the table. Working with someone who trusts us allows us to think big and take risks. Every year, the location informs the gifting through theming, vendors and live activations,” explained Gifts for the Good Life’s Susan Turnock.
This year, Gifts for the Good Life focused on five key factors when designing the experience: It needed to be sustainable, portable, local, convertible and collectible.
1. Sustainability
For the welcome space, the Pen Argyl, Pa.-based company created a sustainable display using boxes that served as “bricks” that were given out throughout the event. The dynamic display changed as boxes were given out in a well-orchestrated fashion.
2. Portability
To kick off the event, attendees were handed these branded boxes, which held credentials, passes, guides and a pop-top, along with their personalized football. On receipt, the staff explained that the boxes would be filled with three days’ worth of swag and that they would be shipped to their homes at the end of the event, eliminating the need for additional boxes for shipping.
“Knowing the CFP is conscious of their environmental footprint, we wanted to make the boxes reusable in a couple of ways,” Turnock said. Co-founder of Gifts for the Good Life Heather Arak added that, “visually, we’ve always been inspired by Andy Warhol’s 'Brillo Boxes' installation. We constantly have stacks and stacks of beautiful custom boxes on their way out of the studio and that is a constant inspiration. Conceptually, we are always striving for zero waste. It felt so good to produce an entire display/experience that changed throughout registration and then got wrapped up and sent home with guests.”
3. Local Vendors
Guests were able to design limited-edition branded footballs that were personalized on-site by local lettering artist Bob Ewing. Attendees also received locally made goodies like Indy-style popcorn.
4. Convertibility
To help create a sense of anticipation throughout the multiday event, Gifts for the Good Life created a tailgate setting, complete with a refurbished truck bed that was wrapped in branded graphics that served as a fun photo background. The truck was surrounded by accessories, including a hand-painted BBQ grill, cooler and cornhole game. Each day, the truck stayed the same, while the gifts that filled it changed.
“The biggest challenge was getting 70% of a salvaged truck from Pennsylvania to Indiana,” Turnock said about constructing the gifting experience. “It arrived in perfect condition and will live another life in other events in that area.”
5. Collectibility
“Having a live-action lettering artist is kind of irresistible to guests of all ages,” Arak said. “They love to see how their colleagues and friends are personalizing the items. It’s like a rotating gallery of footballs and personal gear.”
See more of the creative gifting ideas from this year’s College Football Playoff.
