Quality in every stride

We noticed other headwear brands beginning to feature their caps through a running lens. Richardson already had popular Performance caps that were a natural fit for that audience, like the 220 Relaxed Performance Lite, the 173 Hood River, and the 169 Cannon.

That was an opening to reach runners directly, and Richardson had a natural claim to it. The company is based in the Eugene–Springfield area of Oregon’s Willamette Valley: home of Track Town, USA, and a region with a deep love of trail running. I pitched a campaign to connect the brand to that running community and show Richardson somewhere new: off the ball field and on the trail.

I initiated the campaign, which meant writing the creative brief that set its messaging, voice, deliverables, and schedule. From there I got sign-off from four leaders, worked with our project manager and design team on production, cast the models, built the wardrobe guidelines and shot list, and directed the shoot. I also wrote the campaign email.

Every campaign I ran at Richardson started with the same one-page brief. It gets everyone aligned before anyone picks up a camera: what we’re saying, who approves it, what we’re making, and when it’s due.

1. June 12Brief
2. June 12 – July 28Create
3. July 29 – 31Leadership review
4. July 31Assets approved
5. July 31 – Aug 4Build
6. Aug 5Launch

I wanted the photos to feel like a real morning trail run, not a product shoot. So I cast two local runners and wrote wardrobe guidelines: neutral and earth tones, no big logos, and the gear you’d actually carry on a long run. Then I built a shot list covering everything from parking-lot prep to the cool-down, and scheduled the shoot for 8:30 a.m. at Spencer Butte Park.

The campaign launched on schedule on August 5, with every deliverable in the brief live across email, both websites, sales tech sheets, and social.

A one-page brief is a small thing that saves a lot of time. Once everyone agreed on the objective and voice up front, each later decision (the casting, the wardrobe, the headline) had something to check against.