The North Face

In 2008 New Balance were fourth, fifth or sixth (depending on market segmentation) in the footwear and athletic apparel categories. Growth had slowed and some businesses were declining. This 100-year-old family-owned business had always thought of itself as a challenger brand, but as it had grown to a $1bn business, it had lost some of its challenger edge. If they didn’t challenge themselves they were going to be challenged by the market leaders. We worked with New Balance to help them embrace their challenger roots, align the team around a common strategy and create a roadmap for future growth.

Through the process of our Challenger Lighthouse Identity program we helped the team take a step back, question some basic assumptions of the business, and redefine their strategy around an overall positioning that all of their brands could sit under and use as a directional platform for growth. We helped New Balance stop thinking about themselves just as a running shoe company, it was now a movement, on a ‘Mission to Move People’ offering footwear, equipment and apparel that moves people – physically, emotionally, spiritually and collectively.

The team’s challenger spirit was rewarded with a campaign that outperformed all the key metrics they’d been set. They reversed a decline in category share, and saw a leap in brand saliency of over 20%, winning a Gold Effectiveness Award at the 2022 APAC Effies.

Perhaps most importantly, Uncle Toby’s had become a really enjoyable brand to work on – which kept the energy and good ideas coming. And once again, Uncle Toby’s is an iconic Australian brand: the first thing you’d put in that care package to an Aussie abroad. (OK, maybe second after the Vegemite).