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Source: Danner – Danner X Brandblack
While collabs between luxury brands has become standard, especially with Gucci and companies like The North Face and adidas, and of course Nike x Louis Vuitton, it’s a rare moment when two smaller brands join forces to create. There was the adidas x Allbirds partnership rooted in sustainability, but a classic company like Danner and an upstart brand in Brandblack doesn’t seem to be a pair that would make sense.
That’s unless you realize joint ventures in footwear are becoming an expectation and not an exception. adidas recently partnered with Clarks. Former Nike-man Drew Greer recently suggested startup running company Antepes collaborate with Under Armour.
As the bigger brands continue to gain bandwidth by partnering with influencers and fashion labels pulling eyes and ears from smaller footwear segments, Danner x Brandblack could become a new standard for cross promotion.
It may appear that collaboration on a smaller scale would be counterproductive, but the adidas x Clarks partnership sets a valuable precedent. Clarks does not operate in sports. adidas is casual but isn’t typically in the same market as Clarks. The distinctive market segmentation allows for two dissimilar brands to share IP and invite consumers who may not have considered the other company.
How have the brands created a functional partnership? The technical side of things is important. I discovered this collab by visiting a bookmarked Brandblack site. That’s important to note because I didn’t arrive via social media which is the usual path of discovery.
We are the Exception to the Expected – Brandblack the Brandblack site layout placed the collab “above the fold”. This means it’s the first thing seen when the page loads. Hero imagery moves the customer into the purchase funnel where the most interesting aspect of the technical decisions was made. The link at the lead of this post is on the Danner website.
Brandblack’s UX didn’t attempt to remain in the background by making the click through a target (opens in a new tab). The less established brand funnels seamlessly into the Danner landing page. This is the essence of collaborative efforts.
Had you heard of this collab, or had you ever heard of either brand? Did you know Brandblack did a recent collab that may have gone unnoticed with a brand outside of the sneaker industry? Read about that here:
Did You Catch the Sneaker Brand in Hyundai’s ‘The Drop’ Commercial for the 2024 Santa Fe?