The power of two

One of the most exciting general elections ever is seeing many coalitions being created, both in the political world and in the world of brands. One such association is manifested in a co-branding effort between Puma and MTV, whereby you can literally wear your vote. MTV Rock the Vote is a global show which encourages youth in various countries to actively participate in their country’s elections and voice their thoughts. For this election in India, Puma has created specific T-shirts that are worn by the VJs and celebrities appearing on the screen and will retail them in its stores as well. (It costs ₹1,299.)

In Rock the Vote , celebrities are roped in to lead the movement and in India, Puma is the partner this year. “What better way than a t-shirt to declare that the youth should wear their vote with pride,” says Rajiv Mehta, Managing Director, Puma India. He says it’s more than a short-term election promotion. For the first time, in these elections,- the youth are actively speaking out, showing support for the candidates and being a more vocal, active and engaged electorate. The Puma-MTV co-branded t-shirts “are funky, bright and colourful - they proudly reflect the new-found voice and attitude of the younger generation”, says Mehta, who expects a long-term rub-off in that the youth will associate Puma with that mind set and attitude even after the elections are over. And the shirts will well be worn long after the elections.

Puma has earlier collaborated with designers and stylists, and also crowd-sourced co-branded products, such as Pimp Your Sole in 2010. It had solicited design entries from thousands of people and ultimately retailed five of the final winning designs in its flip-flops, but this is the first time such a large co-branding initiative has been done with another youth brand such as MTV, says Mehta.

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