—The 45-second spot celebrates mullets, adventurers and off-road vehicles.—
By Sabrina Sanchez
Powersports vehicle company Kawasaki Motors has unveiled its first-ever Super Bowl ad, centred around its off-road two-seat vehicle, the Kawasaki Ridge.
"Mullets," created by Goodby Silverstein & Partners (GS&P), pays homage to, and draws a connection between, mullets and the Ridge.
The ad features two outdoorsy adventure seekers who instantly grow mullets upon entering the Ridge vehicle. As they travel through backcountry roads, animals and other passersby such as bald eagles, bears, turtles, dogs and, finally, bald pro wrestling legend Steve Austin, suddenly grow mullets as well.
The 45-second spot, which will air nationally during the first quarter of the game on CBS, as well as the Nickelodeon simulcast, ends with the slogan, “Business in the front, party in the back.”
“The Kawasaki Ridge combines industry-leading performance and a premium automotive-inspired interior; it’s a mix of work and play,” said Bob O’Brien, director of marketing, Kawasaki Motors Corp., USA in a statement. “The mullet is a perfect metaphor—business in the front, party in the back.”
The decision to advertise in the Super Bowl comes as the company looks to take Kawasaki from “its current niche audience” to mass general market awareness, O’Brien said.
A GS&P spokesperson added in an email that the Super Bowl ad will help “expand the market and appeal to a much larger audience.”
“When it comes to mass-awareness, there’s no better stage to play on than the Super Bowl. Advertising in the Super Bowl allows Kawasaki to enter millions of homes and creates instant awareness for the brand and this exciting new product,” the spokesperson said.
The campaign also comes as powersports and side-by-side vehicles have grown in popularity, with recent projections estimating its global market size to grow to $10.95 billion in 2024 and $19.32 billion by 2030, according to Statista.
This is due, in part, to the pandemic, during which families sought new ways to get outside and take adventures. According to Kawasaki, side-by-side vehicles have continued to outpace growing motorcycle sales, and are projected to overtake the powersports category.
In addition to the Super Bowl spot, Kawasaki has developed a Ridge launch campaign with Fuse Interactive.
It focuses on the vehicle’s top features and introduces the tagline “Peak Premium Performance.” It will include digital components, such as banners, social media posts and digital video through the end of April.
Kawasaki will also run a nationwide experience tour, with experiential activations throughout the year.
This article originally appeared on Campaign US.
