SK-II is a premium Japanese skincare brand, and for the very first time, a Tier One sponsor of the Tokyo Olympics. They had signed a handful of inspiring female athletes for an Olympics campaign. In light of the postponement, we were briefed by the brand to come up with an alternate idea from the planned Olympics campaign.

Having spent significant time talking with Rikako Ikee and digging into her story, we took her own words and wove them into a narrative that told the inside story of her journey to where she is now. Beyond the medals, beyond the illness. We wanted her to reveal the story in her own words and not ours. She took the brave decision to have the portraits of her without a wig, shared across the world. This was Ikee as she had never been seen before; without her wig, without her muscles, but with her trademark smile. It was crucial that we got the tone right and allowed her real story to shine. We captured Ikee-san in film and with photography showing the raw and different sides of her that are now a part of her identity. With SK-II & Ikee we created an emotional story that transcended typical branded content.

With the postponement of the Olympics, and Japan seriously concerned by the challenges of Covid-19, we had to find the right balance in tone of Ikee-san’s true-self reveal: an uplifting and positive, yet raw and authentic storytelling of survival from the nation’s swimming sweetheart. Ikee's recovery was closely followed by the media, but always wearing a wig (whilst going through chemotherapy).

The objective was to establish SK-II’s new partnership with Ikee by delivering a message of hope to Japan. Whilst wanting to achieve significant coverage, we had to be careful not to seem sensationalist or exploitative. SK-II’s core consumer demographic is the Young Executives but we wanted something that would resonate with the entire nation, reaching beyond beauty, beyond sport. Providing hope to the entire nation, creating a human connection.

This campaign, from the heart and words of Ikee-san herself ensured the campaign was distinct from her other brand partnerships.

Working closely with SK-II and their partner agencies, the ‘This is Me. Rikako Ikee’ film was launched in May 2020 and posted by Ikee and SK-II on their social channels, together with three striking and personal portraits of the new Rikako Ikee.

It was brought further to life on a dedicated brand microsite with personal messages and letters from Rikako Ikee, and an interactive photo diary—in hopes of providing positivity and strength in these times.

FIRST TIME IN 28 YEARS a female solo athlete and our brand was on the front page of sports newspapers in Japan.

41 TV NEWS COVERAGE: Spots across top 5 TV stations (NHK, Nippon TV, TV Asahi, Fuji TV, TBS)


TOP TRENDING TOPIC across Top 3 key digital platforms on
Line News, Twitter, Yahoo! News

BRANDS INSPIRED BY IKEE & SK-II: Matsumoto Kiyoshi, Takashimaya & Rakuten & SK-II Beauty Influencers

HIGHEST ORGANIC VIEWS: 300k on video across SK-II's Instagram, Twitter & Youtube

HISTORIC HIGH ENGAGEMENT on SK-II Japan Twitter account with positive comments; 5x vs the average:

- Total exposure on our BRAND KPI increased to 345%.

- 41 programs of exposures on TV. Vs KPI, 8 programs.

- 45 exposures on NP/MG. Vs KPI, 2 exposures.

- 647 exposures on digital media. Vs KPI, 180 exposures.

100% ORGANIC EARNED COVERAGE across TV, Newspaper, Publications and Social Media.