Backstory: In the summer of 2016, while interning at Nike, my co-worker and mentor, John 'Wildhorse' Truax, and I wanted to cure our afternoon lulls and went to grab a coffee. There, we discussed John, his wife Wendy, and their two dogs Max and Bernie's upcoming move to Eugene, OR, where John would be taking on a unique new position for Nike Running. In this new role, Wildhorse spoke on how he was tasked with a want of Nike Running: Bring back the hype for running that was once present during they days of former running greats, such as Steve Prefontiane, Bill Bowerman and Alberto Salazar. From there a revelation was made, Run With Bernie was born and the rest was history, as we turned our coffee chat into reality and have created a charitable running movement. This movement, which helps raise money for local animal shelters, is centered on monthly runs WITH DOGS along many of Eugene's historic and popular running trails.

CHALLENGE POSED BY NIKE RUNNING

Revitalize Eugene's once vibrant running scene.

REALIZATIONS

-People desperately miss their dogs when they are away from them

-People like to give back, when it is a secondary thought

TARGET AUDIENCES

-University of Oregon students, desperately missing their hometown dogs

-Dogs needing exercise and companionship

-Runners, joggers, power walkers and walkers alike.

-Olympic athletes

-Dog Owners

STRATEGY

1. Reunite people with dogs

2. Run with Bernie (and friends!) and explore the Eugene running scene.

3. Raise money for animal shelters using the Walk For a Dog app.

DEVISED GAMEPLAN

1. Create a brand logo and overall aesthetic to be used on t-shirts and other merchandise, as well as shared on Facebook and Instagram.

2. Host the inaugural Run With Bernie 5k event on Sunday, January 29th, 2017 and continue to host runs on the last Sunday of each following.

BRAND DESIGN

Brand aesthetic created by Tucker Stosic

PRE-EVENT ADVERTISING

In the two weeks leading up to the event informational flyers and stickers were distributed among members of our target audience, via tabling events on the UO campus, social media, and traditional word of mouth.