Influx

A recent British documentary screened on Channel 4, entitled “Trainers, Reggae and the Olympics” highlighted precisely how difficult it can be for brands to associate themselves with the latest trends.

The documentary shows how Puma seized on Jamaica as the platform for its recent Olympic efforts, providing sponsorship for the relay team and getting involved in the island’s music scene. It’s the later that got the brand in trouble, when they unknowingly ended up supporting some of the island’s finest homophobic dance-hall artists.

Beyond this, Puma experienced local backlash for trying to exploit the cool of this poor Caribbean island, without giving that much back.

guardian newspaper’s review of trainers, reggae and the olympics

Here lies a lesson for all brands trying to dip their feet into the world of cool. The challenge: understand what you are doing and what it could mean, by decoding all the potential meanings of your efforts, before you do them.