Creative Execution

First cut open a real DOLE banana, and remove the inside fruit. Then insert thin micro LED chips, a GPS tracker, small batteries and a slightly smaller DOLE banana back inside the peel. Strap it around the runners’ wrist and run! The marathoner’s race time, heart rate and real-time cheers from Twitter were displayed on the banana peel. Boosting and supporting the marathoners to cross the finish line. We created an introduction film that shows the WEARABLE_BANANA on the web, and a webpage that introduces the device and the nutrition information and benefits of DOLE Runner’s Bananas for all runners.

Runners strapped this new WEARABLE_BANANA device on their wrist like a smartwatch, and actually ran the whole marathon. And of course the marathoners ate the WEARABLE_BANANA after they crossed the finish line, providing not just race data but also potassium and energy!　Showing that the WEARABLE_BANANA is extremely practical and functional, and proving that DOLE bananas are the perfect solution for recovery from race exhaustion. Comments from the runners like, “It’s everything a runner needs!” “And it’s amazingly delicious!” was broadcasted on multiple national news programs repeatedly. The web went bananas! “Forget the Apple Watch!” “The World's First Smartfruit!” Spread not only within Japan but to 178 countries! Media impression was worth over 4,400,000 USD, reaching more than 45,000,000 people in Japan alone. And most importantly the sales of the DOLE Runner’s Bananas shot up to 193% more than before the race, all owing to the WEARABLE_BANANA.

DOLE became a sponsor for TOKYO MARATHON 2015, and wanted to promote their Runner’s Banana, aiming specifically towards the marathoners. Though bananas are a well known fruit for marathoners, the banana market in Japan is competitive and the market is crowded. And running habits dramatically changed with “wearable” tracking devices, starting from the Fuelband, Jawbone, Fitbit and others, with the Apple Watch soon to be released in early 2015. To finish a marathon, recording running data is essential to marathoners nowadays. So we combined this insight with the banana. WEARABLE_BANANA Create the worlds’ first edible wearable! A mobile fitness running tracker that can be digested after the race. Made from a real DOLE banana, using the whole peel and fruit. And even customizing the device specifically for TOKYO MARATHON 2015, which no other wearable can do. This was a wearable no runner could ignore.