Our creative idea was to create a partnership for Visa with iconic British Fashion Designer Henry Holland in order to allow purchases to be made through the power of Visa’s payment network direct from a catwalk show at London Fashion Week.

This was to be achieved via Bluetooth Smart technology to a virtualised terminal in order to devise a new type of integration between design and technology. A global first in fashion history and an opportunity to raise awareness of Visa’s innovative qualities via a powerful combination of partnership, shareable content and media relations.

Linked via Bluetooth Smart technology to a virtualised terminal, the power of Visa’s payment network allowed purchases to be made direct from the catwalk – a global first in fashion history.our goal through this campaign was to produce something desirable, with a practical and functional purpose which Visa could demonstrate showing how they could help remove the friction experienced in the current retail journey from purchase to queue to delivery. Additionally, designers often complain of a “disconnect” between the expense of putting on their catwalk show and the several-month-long gap before the garments hitting the shelves. In a world liberated by convenience, Collab’s collaboration with Henry was just the latest in an ongoing mission to explore creative ways to pay, opening up a wealth of possibilities in facilitating the coveted customer experience further down the (fashion) line.

10 generated over 150 pieces of earned media and 250 million opportunities for people to view the proof of concept on broadcast, online and social platforms.The story was covered globally on the BBC, Press Association, Mail Online, Telegraph, Forbes amongst others. A series of blogposts from henry were also serialised by The Huffington Post. The videos shot around the campaign garnered over 100,000 views online and by identifying influencers with a high social media reach meant Instagram and Twitter buzzed with the hashtag #visacollabcatwalk by users with millions of followers combined. Headlines included “The world’s first cashless catwalk” Mail Online and “Could pave the way for retail experiences” The Telegraph and with Forbes Tech saying ”Here is why Henry Holland’s NFC Payment Ring Matters’.Pushing boundaries saw this campaign put Collab on the innovation map, opening commercial and communication channels with creative industries.