ACM - 2018 Pop Up
Press days are one of those industry conventions that have long been ripe for reinvention. They’re a throwback to an analogue era, and we’ve long questioned the format’s relevance as a means of effectively delivering modern brand and product stories.
Which is why, in 2018, we introduced #ACMPopUp, a four-day event designed to introduce guests to our brands in original and memorable ways.
How? Instead of chatting to journalists and influencers as they politely thumbed through the clothes rails, we took outdoor journalists climbing so they could test Arc’teryx products, encouraged everyone to take part in a collaborative art project with renowned outdoor artist RP Roberts, and gifted bright-white adidas TERREX trail running shoes to influencers on the condition they got them filthy and posted the results on social media.
In the evenings, we curated panel discussions on two of the most pressing issues facing the industry and subjects incredibly close to our hearts: single-use plastic (our entire #ACMPopUp was proudly plastic-free) and the representation of women in action sports.
The guest speakers were key thinkers in their fields and the talks so popular that crowds spilled out onto the streets as thousands more tuned in to our Facebook Live broadcast via media partner MPORA.
Attendees left the #ACMPopUp energised and engaged, taking away far more from our event than just the usual goody-bag. And, with some of our peers subsequently reinventing their own press days to follow a similar format, it looks like the rest of the industry is also following our lead.