Air Max is a key, year-round business driver for Nike and JD Sports. But for one day a year—March 26—the brand elevates the sneaker ‘to the max’; celebrating the legacy and power of Air with new launches and activations. But this year, with global delivery issues reducing inventory and no new silhouette or colorway being launched, we were asked to find a different way to create energy among STATUS Nike loyalists for Air Max Day.

To keep with the ‘The Future is in the Air’ campaign messaging, we had to think outside the typical Air Max Day drop to hit our objectives and connect Air to consumers while strengthening relationships with loyalists. We also needed to drive reach and engagement around a wider target consumer—trend-focused, style-driven Gen Z sneakerheads.

This year, we took air to new heights with the element that made the sneaker so special in the first place—Air.

On 3/26, customers at the JD Sports Time Square store were surprised to receive an AirDrop on their phone awarding them a free pair of Air Max. Every hour, we dropped another pair of Air Max to an unsuspecting customer and gave them the chance to select their free pair of Airs off the wall.

Meanwhile, we targeted STATUS members in Los Angeles and New York City with app and email notifications for the chance to win a futuristic Air Max drone delivery experience. On 3/23 and 3/26, ten participants across both cities had the opportunity to receive their sneakers from the sky.

The idea was asked to drive awareness of Air, and in a way that would draw consumers more closely to key retail stores or exciting locations; enthusing them to keep shopping with Nike and JD.

We also wanted to find, if possible, a novel idea grounded in mobile technology. STATUS consumers are familiar with giveaways and competitions conducted through the JD Sports app, and at large are familiar with map-connected scavenger hunts or QR activations. This led to us exploring all the different possible points of interaction a phone might present us with, and landing on remixing the mechanic of delivery through proximity technology.

We placed more specific messaging around the activations on JD’s Instagram and geo-targeted through their app; enabling us to not spam non-local STATUS members and avoid advert-heavy content on influencer feeds, both of which could turn off social-savvy Gen Z users.

Whether it was from the sky or a digital cloud, we created a branded, one-of-a-kind sneaker drop experience for customers.

First, the hundreds of consumers in JD Sports’ flagship Times Square store were given the chance to grab a pair out of ‘thin air,’ with hourly giveaways via AirDrop technology. Leading up to the top of the hour, a DJ would hype the store and encourage everyone to turn on their AirDrop for a chance to win a pair of Airs.

Second, we focused on rewarding STATUS’ most highly-engaged members with a futuristic drop delivery experience. Weeks in advance, we opened the giveaway to thousands of STATUS members, targeting NYC and LA members through JD’s app and email capabilities. Ten lucky entrants had the opportunity to receive their free pair of Airs by drone delivery.

In-store, excitement was high, with up to 200 participants on Times Square floor hoping to hear their phone ping across a packed day of drops. Meanwhile, from thousands of STATUS members, 10 lucky winners were chosen to look to the skies and watch their sneakers descend to them – at 20mph! – via drone.

With a potential reach of up to 9 million consumers, the campaign sparked around 260,000 interactions; producing an estimated rate over 2x as engaging as influencer averages, between 5-6x that of fashion and retail industry averages. At a time when wider global delivery issues could have derailed a day of celebration, it introduced an innovative, Air-inspired experience that transformed the narrative, recognized around the world. But most importantly, it drove new levels of engagement and delight – as excitedly expressed and retold by the brand’s most high-value customers – in the heart of key retail locations.