Red Bull Challenges FIDM Students to Redesign Wings Team Apparel
In a new partnership, Red Bull is challenging FIDM Students this quarter to redesign their Red Bull Wings Team Los Angeles apparel collection and an undercover sampling bag. Special Projects Chair Amanda Starling and student coordinator, Cicly Frye, worked with top students to participate in this unique Red Bull x FIDM collaboration: Reanne Wang, Alyssa Plough, Alyssa Leach, Kai Erven, Joseph Gonzalez, Marty McKenna, Faith Ibrahim, and Reilly Tilbrook.
The students were invited to a kick-off meeting at Red Bull North America Headquarters in Santa Monica this week to meet Red Bull Marketing leaders and learn about the company’s history, branding, marketing strategy, and to get an in-depth understanding of the design challenge.
Alejandra Gonzalez, Brand Marketing Specialist at Red Bull who works closely with the Wings Team, walked the students through the two briefs. They are challenged to create professional on-trend and stylish clothing pieces to be worn by Wings Team while targeting the at work occasion. She said that Wings needs to look premium and professional to truly fit in and engage with consumers in an at work setting.
The clothing pieces can be for male or female, including but not limited to polos, button-up shirts, blazers, and dresses. The branding must be minimalistic yet visible.
To get a better understanding of the design needs, the students were introduced to two Red Bull Wings Team Los Angeles members, Karen L. and Lexi Goldberg, who talked about what a typical mission is like, and what they like and don’t like about the current apparel collection. The students got a chance to ask them questions so they can target their designs specific to their needs and wants.
Karen likes to style her look with red sneakers, for example, to bring out the red in the logo. She said she’d love a red tank in the offerings. One of Lexi’s favorite Red Bull pieces is a puffy vest layer, perfect for chilly LA mornings. She said she’d love if the designers could add a chic layer to the mix.
The students also networked with Ben Jones, General Manager - Southwest USA at Red Bull, who gave an overview of the history of the company and their branding. The company employs more than 11,500 people in over 171 countries, selling over 6 billion cans a year.
Then, Lizzy Sebuck, National Brand Marketing Manager at Red Bull, gave a presentation on the Wings Team program which is a key part of Red Bull's marketing strategy.
The students will present their designs to Red Bull in July and a celebratory launch event is scheduled for October.
Categories: Merchandise Product Development
