At the beginning of 2021, we got the incredible chance to work on Adidas’ launch of its Full-Cover Swimsuit Collection. It was immediately clear that this was a big deal as it’s been designed for those who - whether for personal choice or cultural reasons - otherwise face limited performance options.

Still in 2021, only 12% of women are completely comfortable wearing a swimsuit at a public beach or pool (YouGov 2021 survey). Body shame and lack of privacy are the two main reasons women do not feel comfortable in their swimsuits.

Additionally, 59% of women aged 18-42 in the United Arab Emirates agree or strongly agree that the “media creates an unattainable body image for female swimmers” and only one quarter of women of women surveyed rate the availability of modest and size inclusive swimwear ranges as excellent.

Through the Beyond the Surface campaign we wanted to celebrate how water accepts everyone unconditionally so we started the conversation with a film featuring 5 unique women breaking down barriers.

The film, produced by Lacosa and directed by Georgette Pascual, was based on a poem, written by poet and inclusivity activist Asma Elbadawi.

The 5 women became the face of the new swimwear collection across social, in-store and e-commerce.

In Dubai, we created the world’s first Liquid Billboard, inviting every woman to become an Adidas ambassador.

Every woman’s experience was turned into personalized posters and live-streamed on Dubai’s largest digital display.

Key influencers received invites that could only be seen through water.

The celebration of women and their freedom in water continued across all flagship stores.

With +$300 million total reach, +$6 million gross media value and reaching 50+ countries across 6 continents, this campaign wouldn’t have been possible without the collaboration with the amazing people at Die Zwei and the different teams at Adidas in India, Germany, France and Dubai. Truly a global team, always in contact and making sure the strategic and creative directions matched throughout this long process.

Agency: Havas Middle East
Client: adidas
Executive Creative Director: Joao Medeiros
General Manager: Fabio Silveira
Associate Creative Director: Anshuman Bhattacharya
Senior Art Directors: Michele De Iuliis, Rodrigo Nakasa, Jonathan DaCruz
Senior Copywriter: Nicholas Bristow
Arabic Copywriters: Karim Sherif, Nagat Idris
Content Creator: Moataz Safar
Production House: Lacosa
Director: Georgette Pascual