ACADEMY SPORTS + OUTDOORS
Creative Platform
This is about unearthing the soul of a brand and waking a sleeping giant.
Academy thrived during the pandemic, but come 2025, the “item + price” playbook of 2020 wasn’t cutting it. The brand had lost its way and its relevance. So we gave Academy a much needed point of view and made it a place you can buy into, not just from.
Cultural Context: From the hyper-specialization of youth athletics to the complexities of the tag lottery, the sports and outdoors landscape is out of control with intensity. Everyone’s lost the plot and forgotten why it is we get out there in the first place.
The Truth: In a world obsessed with winning, fun is undefeated — fun builds bonds, fuels victories, picks us up when we get knocked down and reminds us what we’ve been practicing for. Fun lifts. Fun drives. Fun brings the good snacks.
Strategic POV: Good things come to those who fun.
Creative Platform: FUN CAN’T LOSE
Chapter 1 — Summer
We launched Fun Can’t Lose during what most already consider to be the most fun time of year. Summer is a season devoted to recreation, leisure and good times. But eventually the lack of structure/routine throws families off their game. Boredom inevitably kicks in, but the last thing we want is finding ways to pass the time to feel like a burden.
Seasonal POV: When fun is the goal, boredom is a blank canvas.
Chapter 2 — Back To School
Ahh, Back To School — an annual ritual defined by change and full of conflicting emotions. Kids are curious yet anxious … eager yet intimidated. And parents are relieved yet worried … proud yet nostalgic. Anticipation is the name of the game. “What ifs” run rampant as all the unknowns mount, but the last thing we want is students going back feeling anything but confident.
Seasonal POV: When fun is the goal, the unknown is nothing to fear.
Chapter 3 — Christmas
Christmas is an extreme labor of love. And while it’s coined the most wonderful time of the year, the experience people want often gets lost in all the extravagance. So much gets invested into the season to make it memorable, but the last thing we want is for all the time, money and energy that’s put in to not feel worth it in the end.
Seasonal POV: When fun is the goal, Christmas pays dividends.
Impact/Results
For Q2 2025 — the quarter the campaign launched — Academy reported its first quarter with positive comp sales since 2021.