A global Instagram campaign, exhibit & book inspired by the sea.

As an independent Creative Director — I had the honor to help evolve the iconic maritime shoe brand Sperry after its acquisition by Wolverine Worldwide.

From initial brand positioning, to leadership and product workshops, to retail concepting and content creation — the evolved Sperry had its sights set on a billion-dollar shoe brand.

Following a year of the foundational brand work  — it was time to roll the new Sperry out to younger audiences, long left behind with the previous ‘yacht-club’ positioning and older target customer.

The platform we created was called The Sea Project — and it fueled an amazing 4-year run of cultural events, street-level activations and a vibrant new voice for the brand.

Our flagship campaign was a sustained global Instagram contest, curating thousands of images from all over the world inspired by the sea. The grand finale was a 2-week gallery show in San Francisco during the America’s Cup — and one hell of an opening night where we released Sperry’s first published book just in time for the holiday season.