The Campaign

'True Wetsuits' is a completely waterproof business suit made from wetsuit materials. A collaborated creation by the agency and the client designed to bring back the young busy Japanese salaryman to beauty of surfing lifestyle. The suit allows to avoid the hectic process of changing by just wearing one suit from the surfboard to the boardroom. We first began sales from our online shop where we unveiled the video. The product stoked the desire of surfers everywhere, thus going viral and became one of the most talked about topic worldwide. In result, the suit brought back not just the young busy Japanese working surfers, but created a new breed of surfers to the scene.

The Brief

Improve young salaryman's quality of life by allowing them to reengage with the waves by giving them the accessibility and freedom.

Results

With the new product, this PR technique instantly became a hot topic around the world. 'True Wetsuits' became a worldwide sensation. The 2015 model sold out within three days of its launch, and more orders are flocking in all the way to 2016 delivery. It has accumulated over 10 million impressions in Japanese media and over 120 million impressions globally, and featured in over 100 online stories and blogs up to today. 'True Wetsuits' has not only brought back the men who once traded their wetsuits for business suits, but revolutionized their work-life balance. A powerful product that brought back the young Japanese workers from the boardroom to the surfboard. A true PR effectiveness achieved through product attractiveness that stoked the insight of the surfers.

Execution

Introducing the 'True Wetsuits'. One hundred per cent waterproof, 'True Wetsuits' is the world first innovation you can wear both in water and in the office. There are three styles – Office Smart, Navy Seal and Party Tuxedo – each 'True Wetsuits' comes with a pen-shaped communication device that allows you to automatically send an 'excuse e-mail' if you're too busy having fun in the water. In addition to showcasing the collection, our website also features a 'Surfer's Market Report' – linking the coming day's surf forecast with that of the stock market.

The Situation

Surfing is one of the most popular sports in Japan. However, the unfortunate truth is that 90% of young Japanese surfers hang up their wetsuits for good once they start working in the real world. Sadly, between the brutal early morning commutes and the eye-burning late nights, there is no time for 'salaryman' to hit the beach and practise what was once his 'way of life'. Quiksilver wanted to bring these men back, back into the fold, back into the line-up with a revolutionary product.

The Strategy

Our target audience is young Japanese salaryman, who have given up surfing due to their busy lifestyle. Our objective is to reengage our target with surfing by Quiksilver demonstrating their love for waves and the surfers. Unlike the conventional way of promoting a lifestyle through ads, we created a product designed around our target's lifestyle.