Breakin’ the law

 A boutique running store in Paris called Distance recently took advantage of some news headlines with a clever guerilla marketing campaign.

This summer, Paris lowered its speed limit to 30 km/h (about 18 mph). The initiative was popular (about 60% of Parisians supported it) but it was vigorously opposed by taxi drivers and other driving aficionados. Either way, it was big news. Everyone was talking about it. 

So, after the law went into effect, Distance recruited professional athletes to run faster than 30 km/h and activate the speed cameras. The brand then used those gritty speed camera images on social media and its storefront in a campaign called, “Outlaw Runners.”

Distance already had some credibility in the running community and this campaign burnished those credentials.  The overexposed, black-and-white speed camera images also fit with the store’s reputation as an edgy rebel brand.

Importantly, Distance didn’t take a position on the new law. It was able to cleverly take advantage of a topic that was on everyone’s mind without necessarily alienating anyone.