The Campaign

A 20 year old landmark, Times Square has always been an important part of HK people’s life. However, tireless innovation from new shopping malls keeps shifting younger shopper’s attention away. To maintain and grow, we reconnected with the city’s youth by reigniting their passion for adventures! Introducing “One Pieces Docks at Hong Kong”, we enabled HK youths to immerse into the world of the best-selling story of adventures, passion and friendship. Boarding on the 11M tall replicate of the pirate ship Thousands Sunny, youths set sail to explore around Times Square, meet companions and make discoveries. They could also make a pledge of loyalty to their friends by getting into the most Iconic scene of One Piece! One of TS’s most engaging shoppertainment experience in 2014, “One Piece Docks in Hong Kong” made the headline across local and international media and was the most talked about TS campaign! Without a dollar media spending, the event successfully gained >HK$10M media mentioning!

The Brief

To maintain and grow, TS needs to reconnect with the new generation. We transcended from a “meeting place” to a “place of happenings”, promising a new shoppertainment experience upon every visit. However, excitement is short-lived – we needed to create long term relevancy to secure a relationship for life!

Results

One of TS’s most engaging shoppertainment experience in 2014, “One Piece Docks in Hong Kong” made the headline across local and international media and was the most talked about TS campaign! In just 4 week and ZERO media spend: • Over HKD 5.3M offline and HKD 4.9M online Coverages from local and international media , totally over HKD +10M free media mentioning • Over 800 videos created by international media and fans to share their experience • We gained over 10,000 Facebook Fans, equivalent to a record breaking single month growth rate of 23.4%! • With 12,994 likes, 1095 comments and 1,453 shares, we reached more than 315K of audience organically • Follower of Instagram grew by 23.5%!

Execution

Prior to the event, we surprised the press by sending them “Devil Fruist” and invited them to join our launching ceremony featured young celebrities. After meeting their favorite stars, youths began their adventure by “wearing” a 5M long straw hat sat on the clock tower! Then adventurers got on board to the pirate ship – Thousands Sunny, docked at the center of Times Square. On the 11m tall replica, they were able to look at the city from Luffy’s point of view! Explored around TS, youths met companions and discovered artwork, original drafts and figures which were displayed outside Japan for the first time. At the end, they commemorated their journey by getting into the most iconic scene of OP! On Facebook and radio, youth shared their story of friendship to win an OP themed lunch. Their experience were featured in social media, blogs and shared within youth’s community.

The Situation

Rooted in Hong Kong for 20 years, Times Square (TS) has always been an intricate part of Hong Konger’s live. However, innovation from new competitors shifted shopper’s attention away. TS is now considered as a “landmark” rather than a top of mind shopping destination, especially among younger shoppers.

The Strategy

Study showed that with high educational level, HK youths were confident over themselves and always wanted to achieve. However, many of them believed their standard of living was threatened by uncertainties clouding the city. As a result, they were under huge pressure to work towards a more secured life, eventually eye-closed to adventures lied around. We wanted to encourage them to step out of their comfort zone and embrace possibilities! Introducing “One Piece Docks at Hong Kong”, we reignited HK youth’s passion for adventures! One Piece (OP), the world’s best-selling Japanese comic series, depicted the adventures of Monkey D.Luffy and his diverse crew of pirates who explored the ocean in search of world’s ultimate treasure - OP to claim the title Private King. In youth communities, Luffy is a symbol of adventurous spirit and bravery – attributes lacking in HK’s youth, making him a perfect role model!