Kawhi’s L.A. debut includes ads for New Balance, Terminator movie
Toronto basketball fans knew one-year wonder Kawhi Leonard as quiet and reserved—a guy who did almost all of his talking on the court. That was even the idea behind this spot he did when he signed with New Balance last year.
In the off-season, Leonard chose to move home to Los Angeles, where he seems to have come out of his shell. With the new NBA season underway, he’s appearing in a new ad for New Balance that is all about him being comfortable in the City of Angels.
“Kawhi’s independent spirit has taken him on a journey where he clearly wanted to go home. He first became the face of New Balance Basketball, won a championship in Toronto and now found his way back to Los Angeles,” said Patrick Cassidy, New Balance global director of consumer marketing.
Leonard also had a co-starring role in an ad for the new Terminator movie where, to be honest, his performance is as good as that of the original Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Unilever unveils plan for plastic removal from Dove brand
Unilever is following through with its commitment to dramatically reduce plastic from the Dove supply chain, with 100% recycled plastic bottles by the end of 2019 and plastic-free single packs for soap by next year. Dove said the changes will reduce the use of virgin plastic by more than 20,000 tonnes per year, enough to circle the earth 2.7 times.
Earlier this month, Unilever said it would reduce its use of virgin plastic by 50% by 2025, by replacing more than 100,000 tonnes of plastic packaging with reusable and refillable formats, other alternative packaging and “naked” products.
“We can only eliminate plastic waste by acting fast and taking radical action at all points in the cycle,” says Unilever CEO Alan Jope. “This demands a fundamental rethink in our approach to our packaging and products. It requires us to introduce new and innovative materials, and scale up new business models, like reuse and refill formats, at an unprecedented speed and intensity.”
A long time ago, in a kitchen far, far away…
Le Creuset, known for its colourful (and expensive) cookware, is geeking out. The brand recently announced the “Star Wars X Le Creuset” collection, which includes a C$500 Darth Vader French oven and a roasting pan depicting Han Solo encased in carbonite. There are also Death Star and Millennium Falcon silicone trivets for more budget-conscious fans, and three mini cocottes bearing the likeness of beloved Star Wars droids RD-D2, C-3PO and BB-8.
Le Creuset worked with Greenville, S.C.-based agency FerebeeLane, which previously developed a Disney-themed collection for the brand, on the new collection. It debuts online and in stores on Nov. 1.
KFC sells out wing subscription package
Never underestimate the enormous appeal of fried chicken. According to a report by MediaPost, KFC sold out its U.S. chicken wing subscription package “Seasoned Tickets” within two hours of its Oct. 17 launch.
Developed by Wieden+Kennedy Portland, “Seasoned Tickets” is a partnership with StubHub in which consumers signed up to receive fried chicken-scented tickets that could be redeemed for 48 custom-made Kentucky Fried Wings (a new menu item) either in-store or at KFC.com.
Customers paid $75 for the 10-week package, which runs from Nov. 7 through Jan. 15, with an additional 48 bonus wings on the final week, for a total of 528 wings. KFC limited the run to just 500, with the last package sold within one hour and 52 minutes of its debut.
