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Client: RBK
Creative Agency: Zugara and mcgarrybowen

The RBK "I Am What I Am" campaign features unique looks and personal insights into the family of RBK athletes and artists. As the campaign is global, different countries' sites feature different athletes and artists specific to that region. For example, the U.S. site (www.rbk.com/us/iawia) features Mark Zuppan and Carolina Kluft, while the U.K. site (www.rbk.com/uk/iawia) features Amir Khan and Ryan Giggs. All global sites also feature 50 Cent, Allen Iverson, Stevie Williams, Nelly and other RBK artists.
 
For the overall theme of the global site, Zugara created a family album look and feel to personalize the "I Am What I Am" experience. Most of the insights from the RBK athletes and artists are of a personal nature; it was vital to capture the realism of the individual. As you look through the different portraits on RBK athletes and artists, the pictures will come to life from B/W to color. In addition, the site features a wealth of downloadable content, including an "I Am What I Am" screensaver, wallpapers, MSN/AIM icons and unique mobile content for your iPod and PSP.
-- Matthew Szymczyk, CEO, Zugara

Celebrity endorsements, especially for footwear, tend to follow a fairly predictable formula: shots of athletes playing their respective sport cross-cut with shots of them talking about determination. That’s exactly why I like the RBK “I Am What I Am” campaign. It takes the common celebrity endorsement and brings it down to a much more genuine level, and removes the “celebrity” almost entirely. 

When you open the photo album, you’re faced with eight portraits of RBK athletes and artists that, when clicked, open to an embedded video of the athlete or artist talking about the things that are important to them and who they really are. As they talk about their family, their influences and their passions, it becomes obvious that they are all real people, which is the crux of the message.

By allowing the users to get more personal with the RBK personalities, they become more real, and I think the brand becomes more real as well. The entire experience is very well designed and easy to navigate, and can engage users whether they explore the entire site or just a few portraits, which is crucial when talking to a younger audience with a typically lower attention span.
-- Ryan Anderson, PR manager, Fuel Industries

As you often get a stereotypic image of these superstars, it's great to get a glimpse of the real people. You get so fed up with glossy surface that you don't even reflect on the fact that these are normal people too. But while you feel these people are normal, you understand that they have something extra. They are where they are today for a reason.

The site is nicely executed. Even though the book metaphor has been used a lot, it works quite well in this case, and I love the animation of the pen writing the names. I also like that there are so many things that you can download and use for wallpaper, MSN and your iPod. Being Swedish, I soon had Carolina Klüft as a wallpaper on my computer.
-- David Eriksson, creative director, North Kingdom