These days, the word free can be a pretty compelling tool to lure consumers. And that was the angle Levi's worked when it presented the third annual championship for powersliding—a spectacle of a freestyle sport performed on a course two stories high.
Overseeing the event was the Levi's PR team, headed up by PR director Erica Archambault, who tapped A Squared Group to produce, and San Francisco-based Dispatch to handle PR. A Squared designed and executed the set up of the the massive course, complete with cringe-inducing rails and slides adjacent to the Santa Monica Pier, on a cool and windy Wednesday afternoon. Levi's outfitted the extreme athletes in its jeans, an appropriate buffer against the inevitable friction the competitors endured. (Think of a high-altitude slide down a banister.)
"We're capitalizing on Los Angeles for this really cool, hip event. And there's nowhere cooler than the beach, right?" said A Squared relationship manager Jamie Dordek shortly before the event's kickoff. The parking lot venue is also close to Levi's store on the Third Street Pomenade, where the brand continued its promotions after the championship wrapped.
Brooklyn-based indie rockers Matt and Kim performed at the free public event, and Mountain Dew and taco trucks from cult-favorite Kogi Korean BBQ supplied coveted drinks and snacks. Hit & Run screen printed custom apparel on the spot, adjacent to the course, and Polite in Public set up a photo station with a backdrop made to look like a powerslider had recently crashed through a wall.
Celebrity (ahem) judges included Olympic gold medal skier Jonny Moseley, Jackass's Jason Acuña, and The Girls Next Door's Kendra Wilkinson.
