Adidas Olympic Gold Ads - For once the Beijing Smog helps

Adidas produced these gold themed ads prior to the Olympics. Beijing in the background looks like it is being smothered in a spring sandstorm. But it's interesting that one company has tried to use the photographic effect created by the city's smog to create an atmospheric visual advert which proves to be quite striking.

Gorillaz and Jamie Hewlett BBC Olympics Ad

The BBC has teamed up with Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett to produce it's first advert for the Beijing Olympics. The advert is based on the ancient Chinese folk story "Journey to the West" - which the duo have recently put on as a full length version at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Tickets were sold out very quickly!

From the Shanghaiist - Beijing's Nike Advertising Whitewash

As Nike is not an official sponsor of the Olympics, it's having to deal with it's adverts being whitewashed in Beijing. The photos above show an underpass at Dongdan, right in the middle of the city and next to the ever busy Wanfujing shopping street. As of the 19th July, the government imposed restrictions on advertising by unofficial advertisers in the city. The underpass that was last week plastered with Nike advertisements has now been whitewashed.

Adidas, on the other hand, as an official sponsor, has the right to use trademarked Olympic images and slogans and the permission to set up hospitality areas near the stadiums. While Nike has a strong retail presence in the city, with stores in prestigious locations, come the start of the games on 08.08.08, Adidas will have a more visible presence in the city. It will be interesting to see whether Nike tries to sidestep official advertising policies over the duration of the games and what tactics they might use in doing so.

Nike China Advertising

Nike China is planning an advertising blitz this summer in the run up to the Olympics. As well as having the most famous Chinese athletes in their stable, hurdler Liu Xiang, basketball player Li Jianlian and the latest Chinese sports sensation Zheng Jie, the tennis player who reached the Wimbledon Ladies semi finals last week.

The adverts shown above, although a couple of years old, show how advertising should be done in China. Everday Chinese people in everyday situations show off unexpected improvised athletic skills using just what comes to hand. For anyone who has spent any time in China or watched any Chinese television, this video will definitely ring true.
















Nike 100
A few months ago, Nike took over a space in the 798 district of Beijing. While, relatively unknown outside China, the 798 area is a burgeoning creative neighbourhood in the north east of the city. It's full of old munitions factories and warehouses which are now being used by local artists and gallery owners.

The Nike 100 building showcased the top 100 innovative concepts ever created by Nike and was only open for one month. On entering the building, each guest was given an Ipod Touch preloaded with 100 tracks describing each of the innovations. Also on display were a great deal of rare exclusives. Although I wasn't lucky enough to see the exhibition, it strikes me as a great example of Nike building hype around their brand pre-Olympics.













How long before "Made in China" becomes "Created in China"?
Only a matter of time in my opinion, there's increasing focus around the world on the creative output coming out of China, eg. China Design Now at the V&A in London. From gauging reaction on various blogs, it's clear to me that the label "Made in China" is becoming increasingly resented on the mainland.

It will be interesting to see what kind of role brands like Nike will play in enabling homegrown talent to emerge, and what kind of imagery/advertising will follow. I'm not sure who was involved in the creation of the above Nike Liu Xiang outdoor advert but it's definitely distinctly Chinese in style. I wonder if this is the path Nike will go down in the run up to the Olympics.