The home kit launch for 2009/10 grabbed huge attention, with the ‘Bullring to Bullring’ road trip gaining a massive media presence.
It saw club journalists, including myself, travelling across Europe with the new kit to meet the team in their pre-season training base in Spain ahead of the Peace Cup.
Social Media, still very much in its infancy, was at the forefront during this creative campaign, as I blogged and vlogged my way from Birmingham to Malaga, alongside presenter Jack Woodward.
The trip also activated several key partnerships for the club at the time – Seat as the official car supplier as well as Thomas Cook and Visit Birmingham, as the official travel and tourism partners – whose logos adorned the two specially-designed claret and blue cars that made the journey.
Back home, the home and away kit campaign, again involving Nike as kit suppliers and Acorns as kit sponsors, was two-fold.
First was a post-production marathon by designers – taking iconic images of players like Ashley Young, Gareth Barry, Gabby Agbonlahor, James Milner, Nathan Delfouneso and Emile Heskey from the previous season and then adding the new kits.
This was a time-consuming and highly specialised job, which was completed brilliantly.
The club also purchased ‘light boxes’ which were constructed and used in all our kit campaign imagery.
They were used again later that season for the ‘Wembelieve’ League Cup campaign as the team reached the Final and a tie with Man Utd.
Paul Brown 