Not for the fluffy runners.

ASICS had yet to start running its first mile to compete in Brazil. Nike, Mizuno and Adidas ruled the running category conversations. We needed to not only launch the brand in Brazil, but to find a distinctive way to position the brand and connect with Brazilian consumers.

I woke up early. I went for runs. Or more like went to watch real runners running early in the morning. And I talked to them, uncovering the unspoken truths about the running culture. While Nike and the others were for “I wanna show that I run” runners, ASICS was for the real runners. The ones that didn’t talk much about it, didn’t brag, that know their craft, but were not cool and didn’t dress up fancy to go for a run. They were real people running for real, with ASICS on their feet.

We embraced authenticity to champion what real running is all about and what real runners are made of. The insight was that who runs a lot, runs early in the morning. Mid day and afternoons are for fluffy runners. And who runs a lot, run with ASICS. We set up the brand's digital channels from scratch and used the launch of the new Nimbus to bring the whole brand positioning to life.

Under this concept we invited people to share their morning battles in the streets using the hashtag #corrocedo (#irunearly). The majority of the content in the campaign was generated by users. Thousands of them.

The pictures that runners posted online were amplified via paid media and in ASICS digital channels and stores, populating and grating the brand presence with authentic reach.

As a special activation for this launch, we equipped the shoes of elite runners competing in São Paulo Marathon with RFID tags, and placed RFID readers connected to the internet along the race course. These tags allowed for real time and automatic posting of the runners’ data in social media. Data like partial time, finishing time, distances and pace, further engaging the audience in the race and elevating ASICS as the pro runners choice.

It was a hit and to this day, after 2 years, the hashtag is still being used by runners all over Brazil to share their true passion and commitment to real running. Early in the morning.