After the London Marathon took place recently, so we thought we thought we’d bring you this little gem of a PR stunt, from American menswear clothing start-up, Ministry of Supply.
Half Merrython
People talk about going the extra mile, but would you go an extra 13.1 miles to promote your company? That’s exactly what Ministry of Supply co-founder Gihan Amarasiriwardena did earlier this year – running the Massachusettes Half MerryThon in a full suit and tie.
Why?
This well-documented half-marathon run wasn’t just some random gimmick – there was method behind his madness. The race provided the perfect opportunity for Amarasiriwardena to carry out some performance testing of his new suit – Aviator II. You may wonder why a suit needs performance testing.
Well, the company combines classic men’s styles with high-performance fabrics that stretch, help keep the body cool, and pull sweat away from the skin. Basically, they create clothes for work that behave like clothes you’d wear at the gym.
The quirky PR stunt was the perfect way to demonstrate the brand’s key message.
World record
The stunt doubled up as a World Record attempt, with the aim being for Amarasiriwardena to record the fastest half marathon time, while wearing a suit.
In order to document the record attempt, Ministry of Supply hired a drone service to collect footage from each mile of the race – which also made for great online fodder.
Needless to say, he set the record, with a time of 1:24:41 – which equated to a 6:29 per mile pace.
Product demonstration
The publicity stunt was simple but effective. It landed lots of eyeballs and shares on social media, valuable column inches, and it got people talking about this new suit that can stand whatever the day throws at you.
Blendtec
Tying in product testing and demonstrations with marketing and PR isn’t a new idea. We’ve previously talked about the amusing Blendtec videos, which have taken on a life of their own with a dedicated website – Will It Blend?
The company spends time blending all sorts of weird and wonderful items to showcase just how good their products are. Thus far, they’ve destroyed an Apple Watch, skis, Silly Putty, a rake handle and an iPhone.
Hotcow is a non-traditional creative agency that specialises in experiential marketing that goes viral. Our campaigns generate buzz through crowd participation, PR and content sharing. Contact us on 0207 5030442 or email us on info@hotcow.co.uk.
