Brooks Brings A Bit Of Carnival To The Marathon

The Oregonian is running a feature on work Portland marketing agency, The Great Society, is doing for Brooks Sports, the athletic shoe company based in Bothell, WA.

The campaign, Run Happy Cavalcade of Curiosities is a running-inspired traveling carnival in support of Brooks’ sponsorship of Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon, a series of races paired with rock concerts. The next race is in Seattle on June 26.
At the center of the Brooks’ carnival experience is their Arcade of Oddities, a double-decker bus that houses a museum on the lower level and treadmills on the top. Brooks staffers travel with the bus and fit interested parties with Brooks shoes based on an analysis of their running gait.
Scott Cowan, president of The Great Society, said “guerrilla warfare” helps separate Brooks from the competition. “Keep in mind, our competitors include Nike and Adidas, two of the best and most sophisticated marketers on the planet. Part of what we’re doing with Brooks is getting them to embrace their ‘inner David’ and getting them to fight the Goliaths in their industry,” he said.