Following this year’s Dubai Lynx awards, a creativity report has just been released highlighting key trends among the winners and judges’ comments on the works.
Having won multiple awards at this year’s Dubai Lynx, the Adidas Ravi campaign was one of the many highlights of the festival.
The Ravi Superstar campaign picked up the PR campaign award, won by Havas Middle East. Jury President Tom Beckman, Global Chief Creative Officer,Weber Shandwick, Global, said: “Flawlessly executed and culturally relevant, this marks a new direction for brand collaborations. It shows that audiences are starting to look beyond luxury drops towards more genuine, relatable and inclusive items.”
Adidas redesigned its Superstar trainers in homage to Ravi, a small but iconic local restaurant in Dubai. The unconventional brand partnership earned $6.7m PR value and 646m PR reach, with online stocks selling out in just 15 minutes.
Among the insights from the winning and shortlisted work was the power of regional relevance. Brands from a range of industries, including fast food and sportswear, showed how to target hyperlocal tensions or behaviours to make ideas more relevant.
Some winners turned to community-based partnerships to earn their place in culture. Heinz partnered with local tailors to revise the traditional Arab thobe, demonstrating how to attach a well-known global brand to regional pride.
Other international brands identified unconventional ways to connect with people in the region. ‘Ramadan Unveiled’, a docuseries from American car brand Cadillac, reflected the more clandestine side of the Islamic holy month. Despite facing backlash for revealing the less traditional side of Ramadan, it resulted in a stock oversell of 42 per cent and was awarded a bronze Lynx award in the entertainment category.
Access the full report here.
