by The internal name of the 2020-21 campaign was named ‘Forward’. The power of the player, product and brand were united with a bold arrow shape that gave space to isolate an image of the player and clearly show the product. The arrow itself was simply made from taking the bottom point of the LS shield logo and turning it 90 degrees counter-clockwise; Using the logo this way made a brand-new element feel familiar and on-brand. This logo rotation would be used in the social teaser prior to launch. In early assets the campaign tagline, This is Louisville Slugger was also rotated to be consistent with turn to the future theme.
The background tri-tone image emphasized the pure energy and action. The headlines were a play on the introduction of the best bat ever made, by the company that has been making them the longest. The ultra-contemporary typeface and treatment were deliberately in contrast with Slugger’s heritage and were signifying the brand had turned the corner and was forging new steps into the future.
Prior to launch of the campaign a brand video helped set the tone. Following that, a short teaser campaign helped build excitement. The teaser imagery was from the Louisville Slugger bat vault that houses bats from the inception of the brand and almost every historic player has a bat there. It made the ideal backdrop to emphasize the significance of change coming in 2020.
2020 Campaign
The stage had been set for many new refinements that would culminate in 2020. A space age numeral that not only aligned with the 135th anniversary of slugger but also a new era and technical turning point for their wood bats. A clear top-coat perfected more and became, Exo-Pro, the paints and stains on the bats came in a large variety of contemporary look, the center-brand oval logo on the barrel of the bat was now just the interlocking LS logo. And it was a seamless water-slide decal that was under the clear top-coat. These decals were also used to refine the end-brand type and these decals could be printed with much more detail, more colors, chrome and metallic foils. The cup at the end of the bat was also made more unique and bull-nosed to prevent chipping of the surface at the end. Lastly, to really finish off the bat’s style-overhaul, the knob at the handle end was fitted with a foil ‘medallion’ that was recessed in the wood and was flush with the knob surface. The medallion was a crossover from the composite performance bats and made the bat size highly visible in the store and in the dug-out.
2020 Social
2021: Signature Series
The success of the bat line held fast with a growing stable of high caliber hitters. For 2021, the MLB Prime line would focus on Signature Series. Modeled exactly after Christian Yelich’s or Cody Bellinger’s game model bats (or 4 other MLB players). There was a bat for every type of swing.
2021 Pro Prime
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