Promoting your products in an industry saturated with products is a challenging task. But if you wanna survive in a place like the sneaker industry, you need to get crafty. Sneaker giants like Nike and Adidas certainly don’t miss out on any chance when it comes to iconic commercials and campaigns. But when a brand like Asics steals the show? It requires a stroke of genius, which the brand certainly delivered. How? Thanks to Kai Cenat’s livestream! So let’s see how they managed to do that, shall we?
It Starts with Kai and Nike
When we say that what Asics did was genius, we mean it. You see, let’s start with the beginning of the story. At the start of 2024, news came out that Nike recruited the online streamer and Youtuber Kai Cenat. The popular content creator became a Nike ambassador and that in itself was a smart move on Nike’s part. You see, the brand obviously is trying to leverage the popularity of streamers to their advantage. That makes sense since people like Kai Cenat, Mr. Beast, and many others are pretty influential with Gen-Z and younger generations.
Kai Cenat Promotes Asics Without Doing It!
Now, here’s the catch. As a Nike ambassador, it goes without saying that you can’t promote other competitors. That makes sense obviously because you’re signed to a specific brand! But Asics’ marketing team seemed to have an idea to make waves in the industry. You see, the brand sent Kai a package that had several Asics sneakers as a gift. Naturally, the streamer unpacked the box on his livestream!
So, here’s how it went down. Kai unpacked the box which contained the sneakers. Took them out, and with a sad face showed the kicks to the people watching the livestream. At that moment he realized that he was probably not allowed to wear these kicks due to his Nike contract! But that doesn’t matter, because Asics already got what it was there to do: gain exposure.
How Will This Stunt Reflect on Asics?
If you know your Nike history, then you probably know that the two brands have a history. When Asics (previously Onitsuka Tiger) wanted to go global, it was Phil Knight’s Blue Ribbon Sports that distributed it in the US. Blue Ribbon Sports became Nike the brand that we know and love today! And well, Onitsuka Tiger became Asics. But regardless of the history, the Kai Cenat stunt put Asics on the map as a brand that we shouldn’t underestimate. And honestly, we can’t wait what else they will come up with in the future. If you wanna keep up with all the tea and sneaker news, make sure you keep an eye on our blog. Godspeed!
