Dive Brief: 

• Bacardi Rum will hold a series of global marketing activations under its ongoing “Do What Moves You” brand platform, the brand said in a press release. Timed to summer, the activations are inspired by the feelings of community and self-expression often associated with dance.
• Efforts kick off in June with a speakeasy-inspired pop-up event in New York in partnership with streetwear retailer Stadium Goods. In addition to partaking in cocktails and music, attendees will be able to claim a Dancing Shoes non-fungible token (NFT), which can be traded for a physical pair of shoes.
• A custom Snapchat augmented reality lens will feature a song commissioned by Bacardi. Music festival appearances are also in the mix, with the effort concluding at an Amsterdam festival in October.

Dive Insight:

Bacardi is encouraging consumers across the globe to get on their feet with an expansive summer marketing line-up, bringing pop-up experiences, local retail partnerships and festival appearances to the U.S., Germany, Spain and Austria, among others stops. The brand has routinely built on its “Do What Moves You” platform, with other efforts yielding a remix of Miami Sound Machine’s “Conga,” and last year’s “Move Like It's Summer” campaign.

Serving as the campaign’s launch point, Bacardi and partner Stadium Goods on June 8 will host an RSVP-only pop-up event in New York, which consumers of legal drinking age can sign up to attend online. The event is meant to nod to speakeasy cocktail bars, with the venue appearing to take place at a Stadium Goods sneaker store while also boasting a secret entrance behind the stockroom door that will lead to a Caribbean-inspired party. 

Additionally, the brand is gifting attendees of the event the Dancing Shoes NFT, made with streetwear brand Staple and web3 studio Kollectiff. The digital wearable will be dropped to guests during the event and was made with an intentionally simplistic design so holders can add customizations by engaging with various elements found within the venue. Guests who complete their NFT customization can then turn their design into a unique, physical pair of sneakers that will be delivered directly to them.

To extend its efforts to consumers at home, Bacardi is also launching a “Do What Moves You” custom lens on Snapchat, which will debut at the New York pop-up event with Snap’s AR mirror technology before being released to drinking-age consumers throughout the summer. The lens notably includes the music track “Siéntelo” from the brand’s first-ever original EP, which is also available on Spotify, and can adjust to the individual movements of the consumer to generate a unique rhythm, per release details. Bacardi has previously utilized Snap for its marketing, notably becoming the first alcoholic beverage brand to officially partner with the app on a use of its AR 3D Full Body-Tracking technology in 2021.

Rounding out Bacardi’s summer events will be its appearance at several music events, including Lollapalooza in Chicago, offering cocktails, exclusive merchandise and additional opportunities to customize the Dancing Shoes NFT as part of its Casa Bacardi festival experience. Other recent efforts have also tied the brand to the music scene, including its tie-up last June with Grammy Award-winning producer Boi-1da for a clothing line featuring QR codes that linked to an album by up-and-coming musicians.