Chicago’s Field Museum is hosting the exhibition "The Greeks, From Agamemnon to Alexander the Great" through April 17. To promote the exhibit in December, the museum enlisted Illumivation Studios to cover a Chicago train station with a giant Trojan horse. Visitors at the activation were encouraged to Tweet a photo using the hashtag #TheGreeks.
As an unusual way to get the attention of busy New Yorkers—and camera-happy tourists—FX put a cozy sweater on wheels in the streets of Manhattan to promote the network premiere of its original series Fargo in 2014. More than a week before Fargo's premiere, FX's sweater-clad double-decker bus toured New York City.
As part of an advertising campaign centered on the phrase “In an Absolut World: Opportunities Always Pop Up,” Absolut Vodka commissioned artist Justin Broadbent to create an art installation in the Toronto Transit Commission's abandoned Lower Bay station in 2009. The end result was an art exhibit by day and a party space by night, with themed subway cars. The "Love" subway car, filled with gerbera daisies and oversize paper flowers, included a love-letter vending machine.
In 2007, bleary-eyed New York commuters got an early morning wake-up call thanks to Bravo's then-new series, Top Design. Instead of entering the usual 42nd Street shuttle terminal in Grand Central, New Yorkers found themselves in a chic living room complete with glowing lamps, flowers, and plush modern furniture. The event, which was created by Jason Klarman, senior vice president of marketing and brand strategy for Bravo, and Jim Anstey and Gabe Banner of Lime Public Relations and Promotion, was intended for members of the press, but given its very public location, crowds of people on their way to work stopped to gawk at the contestants and the living room displays, which were conceptualized and furnished by designer Jonathan Adler.
In 2007, Harry Potter hype came to a boiling point when the seventh and final installment of the book series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, became available. In preparation, Scholastic heightened anticipation across the country with a bus tour celebrating all things Potter. Traveling to 37 libraries in 15 cities, the tour allowed fans to board what author J.K. Rowling described as the “violently purple” Knight Bus (identical to the enchanted one that debuted in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) and record a video detailing their devotion to the ever-popular teenage sorcerer.
Uniqlo, the Japanese clothing brand, opened its first Chicago store on Michigan Avenue in October. To promote the opening, the brand hosted a series of “train takeovers” that began in late September and continued through the store's opening day. During the promotion, the exterior of the train was wrapped in the brand's logo, a sign that read "From Tokyo to Chicago," and information about the store opening.
In 2012, eyewear brand Warby Parker staged the “Class Trip.” The traveling marketing campaign involved an old yellow school bus retrofitted to look like a professor’s library. “It’s important to us that Warby Parker has high national visibility, which can be a challenging goal for an online business,” said co-founder Neil Blumenthal of the promotion. “Traveling across the country on wheels seemed like a fun and out-of-the-box approach to retail.”
In 2013, Target built a two-story 1,520-square-foot dollhouse furnished with more than 3,000 products from its Threshold collection in New York’s Grand Central Terminal.
French winemaker Georges Duboeuf celebrated the official uncorking of its 2009 Beaujolais Nouveau red wine harvest a hippie-theme luncheon at Au Pied de Cochon in Miami in 2009. A Volkswagen bus decorated with peace sign and flower stickers lead a procession of motorcycles down Washington Avenue to promote the wine's arrival at the restaurant.
In 2010, the Patrón Tequila Express, a refurbished antique railcar, went on a five-city Epicurean Express tour. At its Washington stop, the tequila brand served cocktails and hors d'oeuvres in a narrow loading area between tracks 29 and 30 at Union Station.
Ted Baker, a British brand known for its irreverent style, opened a Midwest flagship store in Chicago in 2012. After the in-store launch event, guests were whisked to the after-party via a quintessentially English mode of transportation: a branded double-decker bus, which served as a roving advertisement for the brand.
In 2007, the Toronto Transit Commission’s Lower Bay subway station—closed since 1966 but still used for film shoots—served as a backdrop for the Italian Trade Commission’s annual Toronto International Film Festival party. Kim Graham & Associates chose to decorate the station, which is somewhat of an urban legend for many Torontonians, in a surreal, retro glam theme; Terroni served Italian red wine and prosecco from one of the subway cars.
Spa music spilled out of speakers in New York's Grand Central Station and Chicago's Union Station one morning in 2010, providing an unusually ethereal soundtrack for both cities' morning rush hours. To coincide with the launch of its new financial management tool, Zendough.com, consumer reporting agency TransUnion staged two so-called “Yoga Takeover” events that brought large-scale mat classes—and dreamy accompaniment—to both venues.
Netflix and experiential agency Magnetic launched a cross-country bus tour to promote the star-filled miniseries Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, which the streaming service released July 31. Decked out in the series logo with the hashtag #WHASBusTour, the bus came with costumed camp counselors who encouraged passersby to participate in camp games like tug-of-war. The activation also offered show-theme swag like trucker hats, canned veggies, and camp T-shirts, and provided photo ops with cut-outs of the show's characters. The tour launched in New York's Madison Square Park in July and made a stop at the show's world premiere at SVA Theatre. The bus also stopped at locations in Austin and Los Angeles.
Health-focused on-the-go snack brand GoGo Squeez partnered with MKG for the activation tour of its customized vending machine, dubbed "The Goodness Machine." The structure, built by Square Design, was a giant version of the brand's signature applesauce packet. The tour, which kicked off in New York's Madison Square Park July 23, invited kids to #CatchTheGoGo by pushing a button, which activated a launching mechanism that shot out an applesauce packet attached to a parachute with the brand's label. The activation also incorporated a social media and video element, with a custom video recorder that recorded kids interacting with the machine. The videos were uploaded to the “Goodness Machine” website as 15-second GIFs.
Starbucks Canada partnered with YouTube star Lauren Riihimaki (also known as LaurDIY) to promote its new Teavan Sparkling Tea Juices by turning a local Toronto café into a "Sparkle Shop" on August 8. People who stopped by the pop-up shop were able to sample the beverages, meet Riihimaki, and get "sparkled" by brand ambassadors who were on site to glitter hair, beards, nails, sunglasses, and more.
The Spamerican Tour promoted the canned meat with a 13-market food truck tour, which took place over a four-month period. Along with free samples of dishes made with Spam, the Match Marketing Group-produced tour gave customers free T-shirts, sunglasses, temporary tattoos, and a chance to win a trip to Hawaii. Spam spokescharacter "Sir Can-A-Lot" was also on site to interact with consumers.
Restaurant Bull & Bear in Chicago promoted National Hot Dog Day on July 23 with its Homewrecker hotdog, a 22-inch Chicago-style hot dog that was topped with onions, tomatoes, peppers, relish, and mustard. The restaurant challenged customers to finish the dog in one sitting. Winners received a "Homewrecker Champ" T-shirt, bragging rights, and, of course, a free meal.
To promote the second season of nude reality series Dating Naked: Playing for Keeps, VH1 played along with the show's premise by unveiling an interactive street-level billboard on the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue in Los Angeles on July 17. Pedestrians were invited to remove squares from 15- by 8-foot structure, designed by Awestruck Marketing and printed by Arete Digital Imaging, to reveal a man and a woman in their birthday suits. The back of each square revealed naked-theme prizes that included beauty products, health services, photo shoots, and a resort getaway.
Hendrick's Gin promoted its product with the Hendrick's Air campaign, which involved 130-foot flying cucumber that traveled across 13 cities at 35 miles per hour. The tour ended on July 29 with a viewing party held at Galleria Marchetti in Chicago.
French mustard brand Maille used Toronto Bastille Day on July 12 to promote its condiment with a Paris-inspired pop-up bistro. Planned by the PR Department, the pop-up served sandwiches, macarons, and cocktails made with different flavors of Maille mustard. The "1747" cocktails, served in jars with the brand's logo, included Cognac Remy Martin and Maille Provençal.
As an off-site promotion at this year's Comic-Con International in San Diego, which took place July 9 to 11, the History channel promoted its period drama Vikings by offering rides in a custom-branded longship. While on board, fans received drinking horns that gave them access to drink specials at select bars throughout the Gaslamp Quarter. The vehicle was also capable of driving on land, where it distributed the horns as well. Civic Entertainment Group produced the promotion.
Kentucky Fried Chicken's three activations centered on the brand's founder and mascot, Colonel Sanders. Through a partnership with Adult Swim, the fast-food chain positioned seven life-size Wi-Fi-enabled Colonel Sanders statues at various intersections of the Gaslamp Quarter, each decked out in cosplay attire. When conferencegoers located the statues and connected to the network, they reached a co-branded Kentucky Fried Chicken and Robot Chicken digital hub for custom content. Costumed staffers were also on hand to promote the brand and its comic campaign.
August 27 is officially National Banana Lovers Day, but Magnolia Bakery teamed up with UberEats to dub it National Banana Pudding Day. The first 300 customers who order a meal using Uber's city-specific food delivery option will receive a free small banana pudding from the bakery. Customers who buy banana pudding in stores will get a free banana-theme temporary tattoo and a chance to win free pudding for a year if they use the hashtag #GoBananas and tag the bakery in an Instagram post. In addition, Magnolia will offer a Banana Pudding Cupcake through the weekend.
Community-driven hospitality company Airbnb partnered with SF Pride for a second year and launched a #HostWithPride pop-up. The activation traveled to various neighborhoods over a two-week period, encouraging residents to participate in D.I.Y. activities and a community art installation.
To promote its climate change-focused Save Our Swirled campaign, Ben & Jerry's embarked on an 8,000-plus-mile road trip in an electric Tesla Model S. Those who tweeted at the brand got free scoops delivered to their office from the brand's eco-friendly version of an ice cream truck, which was fitted with three freezers that held more than 1,000 scoops. The company also released a new raspberry and marshmallow-flavored ice cream named after the campaign.
UrbanDaddy and Grey Goose partnered to present a French-theme Summer Soiree, which showcased the vodka brand's Simply Served cocktail program that mixes citrus-infused Grey Goose flavors with Perrier and fresh herbs. They ended a seven-city tour on the Roof at the Viceroy in New York on August 5. A monitor showing videos of the cocktails was positioned at the event's outside bar.
