Converse
Getting to the heart of real young London
Re-engaging an apathetic audience
Converse is best known for the iconic Chuck Taylor, a sports shoe turned fashion staple and cornerstone of some of the most iconic looks of the last century. To maintain this position, Converse briefed The Elephant Room to paint a current and vivid picture of young people in London.
Using our network, we found respondents aligned to Converse’s segmentation from different boroughs and all with a story to tell that was unique to them, their upbringing and their environment.
Re-defining what research needs to look and feel like
Once we’d recruited a diverse set of respondents, we moved quickly into the ethnographic phase of research which provided a candid view of real life in the city centre. The heartfelt integrity that laced the respondent’s videos couldn’t have been captured by traditional research outputs, nor would they pay homage to the weight of the insights gathered.
Rich insight brought to life through documentaries
Structured around Converse’s pillars we took forward the most animated and opinionated respondents and shot 3 short documentaries following a day in the life. These moving portraits created a compelling view of not only the individual, their hopes, fears and aspirations but the importance of their connection to their local neighbourhood and the impact of the people closest to them.
The output retained the authentic voice of young people and provided a solid foundation for Converse to reacquaint their entire business with their core customer and develop their dialogue with an apathetic audience.
