ESPN
NHL All-Star Influencer Kit

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An all-star mailing to the stars

ESPN has become the go-to destination for NHL hockey fans, airing important games all season long, into the Stanley Cup playoffs and Finals. When it came time to promote the 2024 All-Star Game, they wanted to create something special to make influential and popular hockey fans even more excited about the game and the events leading up to it— and, in turn, build buzz among their followers. To achieve this goal, we created a custom-built, puck-shaped premium gift package to send to 25 VIP influencers, each containing a personalized All-Star jersey designed by Drew House.

CHALLENGE
Create a premium mailing to VIP influencers to get them excited about the NHL All-Star Game weekend on ESPN and encourage them to engage with their followers across social and TV media.

INSIGHT
The gift of a personalized Drew House All-Star jersey would be a great draw, but the presentation needed to be on par.

APPROACH
We wanted to create something that was as equally upscale as it was relevant to the event, while paying extra attention to the additional details and package dressings that would make it truly memorable.

ESPN NHL All In One

PACKAGING
Drew House designs are big, bold, and iconic, with oversized graphics and logos that make an equally oversized impact. To reflect that, we created a unique pop art-inspired giant hockey puck box to hold the jersey—something a die-hard hockey fan would immediately recognize and enjoy. The “hat box” structure was covered in matte black, soft-touch paper and embellished with white foil stamping. Extra attention was paid to the details, including an embossed hockey puck diamond texture on the sides.

ESPN NHL Cards
“Creative excellence, care, and personality are some of the key qualities Suzy Jurist and the SJI team brought to the table for our 2024 NHL All-Star Campaign. As a reliable and go-to partner for various ESPN projects, we were truly excited to see how they would bring our first NHL project to life – and they delivered. The elements that the team incorporated from not only a visual perspective, but a tactile perspective were very clever and super premium. With various ESPN talent and influencers being exposed to their great work, key stakeholders across ESPN and the NHL were delighted with the outcome. SJI treated the project as their own, and brought a level of service and passion that showed in the final product they delivered.” Thierry Lochard Associate Director, Marketing, ESPN

INTERIOR
The box’s interior was similarly designed with attention to the smallest details. The jersey was carefully wrapped in custom tissue paper and sealed with an All-Star sticker. Once the jersey was removed from the outer box, the inside revealed an NHL All-Star pattern covering parts of the interior. As an extra surprise, an actual NHL All-Star hockey puck was housed in the base.

The package was sent to 25 NHL media personalities, movie stars, and influencers. Recipients filmed themselves opening the packages live on air, posted about them to their followers, and attended and talked about the game on ESPN—all leading to an oversized payoff for a one-of-a-kind, larger-than-life mailing.

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