Return of the Rad

Design lead – Art direction, Graphic design, Photoshoot direction & Model

How do you make people care about pants that were discontinued 20 years ago?

The Rad pant was one of MEC's most iconic products before being discontinued in 2001. When MEC brought it back in 2020 — same blueprint, same fabric, same original logo tags — the creative challenge wasn't awareness. It was urgency. Our strategy: launch on April 1st. By capitalising on the PR and social media buzz that brand stunts typically generate on April Fools' Day, we turned a relaunch into a cultural moment. The campaign leaned into the pants' retro aesthetic with a deliberately lo-fi, irreverent visual language — bold neons, zine-style typography, and an art-directed photoshoot I led from casting through to final selects. The Rad pants sold out within 48 hours.

Campaign rollout

I developed the visual concept and design system, and designed and produced all assets extending across every touchpoint: homepage takeover, PLPs, organic and paid social, email, and in-store POS.

Plus, an easter egg moment

I supported the Creative Director in developing the concept for the photoshoot and also starred in the shoot as the Girl in the pink shirt (with stero) and the Upside Down Girl in yellow pants. The goal was to capture the spirit of the original 80s/90s aesthetic while feeling current and shareable. The resulting images anchored the campaign across all marketing touchpoints.

Sold out in 48 hours

The Rad Pants campaign generated significant organic social traction — driven in part by the April Fools' timing and the nostalgia angle. The Rad pants sold out within 48 hours of launch, exceeding sell-through projections and validating the creative approach.