THE MUTATION AND EVOLUTION OF AIRWALK
Airwalk was the first brand I ever worked on as an Art Director, and one of the first agencies I worked with helped build it into a cultural force in skateboarding. But cultural credibility in skate is fragile. The brand grew too fast, lost the plot with its core community, and eventually lost its footing entirely.
Years later, now at Bulldog Drummond and working as Creative Director, I was instrumental in winning the Airwalk account back, building the pitch vision that brought the brand into our shop. What followed was the creation of the Genetic sub-brand: a dystopian-inflected line where the name, the icon, and the proprietary shoe technology were all designed in concert, with the identity literally integrated into the product and packaging.
Genetic reestablished Airwalk's street credibility, reignited energy around the brand, and restored meaningful sales momentum, closing a personal and professional loop that started at the very beginning of my career.
