New Balance, the official shoe and kit sponsor of the Virgin Money London Marathon, has teamed up with Strava and opened a new pub called ‘The Runaway’ where runners can only buy beer with the miles they have run.
The idea behind the branded pub, which is located on Charing Cross Road, is to give marathon runners some extra training motivation and was based on the insight that training for the marathon isn’t easy and that is why so many runners like to celebrate (reward themselves) with a pint.
So, inspired by the local ritual of runners coming together to enjoy a pint after a hard run, New Balance opened a branded pub exclusively for runners — where the only currency accepted was miles run.
This activation was the foundation of our “Everybody’s Race” campaign, designed to acknowledge the Virgin Money London Marathon as not just any race, but a race that unites the larger British community like no other event.
Welcome to #TheRunaway pub – where you can redeem your @STRAVA miles for free pints.
Our first challenge starts tomorrow. Find out morehttps://t.co/yBoYGoafY8 pic.twitter.com/NQyFRHJxiF
— New Balance UK (@NewBalanceUK) February 17, 2019
The Runaway, which unsurprisingly is New Balance’s first ever pub, only accepts miles looked on the running/cycling social fitness network as currency.
New Balance and Strava launched four challenges all of which focus around marathon training milestones for runners taking on a this year’s London marathon.
When runners join the challenge on Strava they receive a ‘Runaway Card’ which they can add to the wallet on their phone.
The card automatically fills up with the miles they’ve run on Strava and these can then be exchanged for pints in the pub.
Challenge 1 at The Runaway – Run 40 Miles for Pints:
To be redeemed on either 24 February or 3 March 2019:
50% Badge: 2 x drinks each for you and a friend.
100% Badge: 3 x drinks each for you and a friend.
Challenge 2 at The Runaway – Run 13 Miles for Pints:
To be redeemed on either 10 or 17 March 2019:
50% Badge: 2 x drinks each for you and a friend.
100% Badge: 3 x drinks each for you and a friend.
Challenge 3 at The Runaway – Run 60 Miles for Pints:
To be redeemed on either 24 or 31 March 2019:
50% Badge: 2 x drinks each for you and a friend.
100% Badge: 3 x drinks each for you and a friend.
Challenge 4 at The Runaway – Run 10k for Pints:
To be redeemed on either 14 or 21 April 2019:
50% Badge: 2 x drinks each for you and a friend.
100% Badge: 3 x drinks each for you and a friend.
While the upstairs of The Runaway is a normal, fully stocked pub, downstairs there is a gym and weights branded space so runners can take part in strength training and stretching sessions.
This distinctly British incentive initiative is being promoted across both brands’ digital and social channels through film and supporting content,
Redeem your @STRAVA running points for pints at our very own pub The Runaway.
Join the challengehttps://t.co/ifBjUD3GsE pic.twitter.com/RwFTvFRDgU
— New Balance UK (@NewBalanceUK) February 22, 2019
1 week left to collect your @STRAVA miles to trade in for free pints at TheRunaway.
40 miles for pints – https://t.co/ifBjUD3GsE pic.twitter.com/J6swzisRy6
— New Balance UK (@NewBalanceUK) February 25, 2019
“We’re excited to open our very first New Balance pub and look forward to welcoming runners to the bar to exchange their miles for pints,” said New Balance UK & Ireland Senior Marketing Manager Samantha Matthews.
“The Runaway pub brings our Everybody’s Race campaign to life and aims to empower runners throughout their weeks of training, offering an escape and reward when needed and a hub for the running community to come together and support each other.”
Click to view the New Balance and Strava online gateways.
Comment:
The pub, which was open from 18 February to 3 March, saw 23,110 individual cards added to wallets and more than 5000 people run 532,961 miles run and thus earning 62,000 pints of beer.
The campaign was covered in a wide range of UK and international media titles included Runners World, Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Elle, HighSnobiety, Hypebeast, Trend Hunter, Ad Age, Campaign, Hush, Sole Collector, Runner’s Radar and Uncreate.
Linking beer to marathon’s as an incentivisation mechanic isn’t as rare as one might imagine.
The official beer partner of the TCS New York City Marathon, Michelob Ultra, also aimed to inspire runners in training and through the race (see case study).
The Strava/Pub initiative is part of New Balance’s umbrella London Marathon ‘Everybody’s Race’ campaign which supports marathon runners through their training.
The advertising strand of ‘Everybody’s Race’ launched more than two months ago with a training focus,
and then spiked in January with a hero ‘The Race Before The Race’ spot,
and a set of supporting individual athlete cut downs.
It was back in May 2017 that New Balance was announced as the official shoe and kit sponsor of the Virgin Money London Marathon in a long term agreement that included other events organised by London Marathon Events Ltd (such as the 2018 Vitality Westminster Mile, the Vitality London 10,000, the Standard Chartered Great City Race and The Big Half, the new half marathon in London).
As part of the deal, New Balance makes an annual contribution direct to The London Marathon Charitable Trust – which works to inspire activity and fund recreational projects.
Originally the relationship between New Balance and the London Marathon dated back to the early 80’s when New Balance was the shoe and kit sponsor in the formative years of the event.
“We are eager and excited to begin our long term sponsorship with London Marathon Events and the charities they support,” said Tom Carleo, Vice President of Running at New Balance when the deal was signed.
“The values, history and vision of the two brands have amazing synergies. Together we will bring energy, creativity and passion to the world class events that the London Marathon team has created.”
New Balance, who is also the official shoe and kit sponsor of New York Road Runners and the TCS New York City Marathon (see our ‘Road to NYCM’ campaign case study), continues to add strategic sponsorships in support of major marathons in leading cities worldwide.
Links:
New Balance UK
https://www.youtube.com/user/NewBalanceUK
http://www.twitter.com/newbalanceuk
https://www.facebook.com/NewBalanceUK/
http://www.instagram.com/newbalanceuk
Strava
https://www.facebook.com/Strava
https://www.instagram.com/stravacycling/
Virgin Money London Marathon
https://www.virginmoneylondonmarathon.com
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