Playtex Sport is helping high school girls stay involved in sports with its new Play On Canada grant program.
Between now and Oct. 31, high school teams can apply online at PlaytexPlayOn.ca to receive up to $5,000. In total, Playtex Sport is awarding $50,000 in grants across the country.
“Our target on Playtex Sport is teenage active girls, and we know there’s a high percentage of teen girls who plays sports,” said Jill MacKinnon, brand manager at Playtex Sport, which is owned by Edgewell Personal Care. “But, we also know there’s a high percentage of teen girls who don’t stay in sport and there’s a higher dropout [compared to boys] for various reasons.”
To better understand why girls don’t stay in sports, Playtex commissioned a survey of 700 Canadian girls and women between the ages of 13 and 24. The survey, which took place in May, found nearly three-quarters (72%) of girls said they were unable to participate to their full potential in high school athletics.
More than a third (35%) said they couldn’t afford athletic participation fees, uniforms or transportation. Nearly half (48%) said boys had more choices when it came to high school sports, and 38% said boys got more support from school administration.
“Given that girls are dropping out because of these barriers, we felt there was a need to try to help girls ‘play on,’” said MacKinnon. “The grant program is giving teen girls and their teams additional resources and helping to eliminate those barriers, so that they stay in sports.”
Ahead of the campaign launch, Playtex gave away two grants and created videos to promote the program. At a high school in Bedford, N.S., Playtex Sport covered the cost of transportation for a running club to attend a 5k race and supplied new running gear. And at a high school in Cochrane, Alta., the brand surprised the girls’ volleyball team with a locker room revamp and new team uniforms.
The videos are being leveraged through a digital media buy and Playtex’s social media channels. In addition to providing information and product samples in girls’ change rooms, the brand is promoting the grant program through public relations and in-store displays.
Paradigm is handling PR, digital and social; Studio M created the videos; MEC handled the media buy; Real Interactive developed the website; and Six Degrees is handling in-store marketing.
