The first New Era Major League Baseball cap was produced in 1934 for Cleveland. And for the better part of the past century, New Era has been the official on-field headwear partner of the MLB.
But the declining viewership numbers across the league and lower interest numbers in baseball slowed the sales of official baseball caps. New Era asked Sid Lee to build a campaign to reinvigorate the interest in official on-field MLB caps in this environment of fan apathy towards baseball.
CHALLENGE
Create excitement around the New Era MLB collection despite strong headwinds of a shrinking audience for baseball.
INSIGHT
“Shit. I made the Yankee hat more famous than a Yankee can.” - Jay-Z
The New Era MLB caps don’t just represent the teams. They stand for much more than that.
SOLUTION
Leverage the cultural impact of the caps beyond baseball. Pulling back the role of the cap from representing just the baseball team to stand for the city, the fashion, the music and the culture that surrounds it.
Building this equity in the brand, the team and the products reduces the risk of tying the sales to team performance. It doesn’t matter how the Cubs are doing. The cap represents the identity of people in Chicago.
We built a campaign of “Wear Your Allegiance” and showcased the many facets of an MLB cap and where it could take you. With a quirky tour guide, and paying homage to some of the greats, we took fans on a journey through starting with the OG DJ Clark Kent to Stalley, Lunice and even Matt Kemp.
RESULTS
The cultural currency of the campaign was noticed and picked up by Complex, High Snobiety and other fashion publications. It showcased a tone and conversation that got a new audience excited about the caps outside of baseball.