New Sport Chek spot features a sweating Steven Stamkos

Sport retailer builds on its 'What are you sweating for?' campaign

Canadians lamenting the summer for its lack of NHL action can get a dose of hockey in Sport Chek’s latest TV and digital spot.

The ad, released Monday, features amateur hockey players and NHL star Steven Stamkos performing drills and pushing their limits. It’s the latest in the sport retailer’s “What are you sweating for?” campaign, which aims to connect athletes of different levels through the lens of training.

“Owning training for us became critical because it’s foundational to every sport. We said we need to make training something more tangible and that’s where sweat came in, because there’s no training without sweat,” said Frederick Lecoq, the senior vice-president of marketing at Sport Chek’s parent company FGL Sports.

Stamkos was selected for the spot because “He’s a perfect fit for the brand. He embodies the value of training, sweating, working hard. Pushing your limits, never [giving] up. He’s such a hard worker,” said Lecoq.

The ad was shot in July at a hockey arena in Toronto’s west end. After filming on the ice for hours, Stamkos told Marketing, “It’s about doing your best. Digging that extra mile. The last couple spots I’ve done with Sport Chek seemed to have the same feature; are you willing to do that little more than the next person to get that much better, no matter what sport.”

Amateur hockey players were included in the spot to form an emotional connection with customers. “I don’t think we should feature only pro elite people in our ads because you’ll get a disconnection. Instead of talking about how different these pro athletes are you should start with what they have in common with you — you all train for something and sweat for a reason,” Lecoq said.

The content shot during filming in July will be distributed throughout the year on social platforms.

“Building a brand is around consistency and continuity. The world of marketing is changing, people aren’t buying content for a limited period of time. The more content you have you can sustain that momentum,” said Lecoq.

Rethink was responsible for the creative, North Strategic managed PR and social, and Touché handled the media buy.

See all comments Recent Comments
Tom Hagen

I like how Sport Chek and their agency are breaking new ground in this category. This is the first time I’ve seen an ad with a lot of athletes working hard and sweating. What a novel approach. Kudos to the team for uncovering a creative insight that hasn’t been tapped into yet.

Monday, August 17 @ 11:39 am |

Add a comment

You must be to comment.

Advertising Articles

BC Children’s Hospital waxes poetic

A Christmas classic for children nestled all snug in their hospital beds.

Teaching makes you a better marketer (Column)

Tim Dolan on the crucible of the classroom and the effects in the boardroom

Survey says Starbucks has best holiday cup

Consumers take sides on another front of Canada's coffee war

Watch This: Iogo’s talking dots

Ultima's yogurt brand believes if you've got an umlaut, flaunt it!

Heart & Stroke proclaims a big change

New campaign unveils first brand renovation in 60 years

Best Buy makes you feel like a kid again

The Union-built holiday campaign drops the product shots

123W builds Betterwith from the ground up

New ice cream brand plays off the power of packaging and personality

Sobeys remakes its classic holiday commercial

Long-running ad that made a province sing along gets a modern update