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Luxury health and wellness brand, Thorne, has teamed up with basketball legend, philanthropist and entrepreneur, Dwyane Wade, and his up-and-coming baller son, Zaire, for a campaign and partnership each of them hopes is “built to last.”
Produced by BUCK, the campaign, titled “Build to Last,” comprises two 30-second hero spots; one featuring the retired, 3-time NBA champion and 2023 Hall-of-Fame inductee giving the audience a glimpse of his maintenance routine, and the other featuring the younger Wade, a rising star in the Basketball Africa League for the Cape Town Tigers, practicing his moves on the court.
It’s one of my favorite partnerships now because my son and I are doing it together.
Dwyane Wade, former NBA star
Both Wades are juxtaposed onscreen alongside teams of scientists developing the most advanced products to suit the needs of their generationally different bodies. Three additional 15-second clips, one of which features the duo together, will be released online with the hero videos, which will also run across CTV and all Google channels.
The 13-week global campaign, which launched Tuesday, will roll out in twelve key markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Beijing, Shanghai and Canada, with out-of-home (billboards, subway panels, urban panels, spectaculars) running exclusively in Beijing and Shanghai. Paid search, activations, and influencer and brand ambassador creative engagement will round out the remaining elements.
The brand will also offer limited-edition “Build to Last” product boxes based on Dwyane and Zaire’s personal “product line-up.”
Wade(s) in uncharted territory
For Dwyane and Zaire—who, along with Dwyane’s wife, Gabrielle Union, had already been using Thorne products for years before receiving the call to partner with them—the opportunity to collaborate on a campaign as a family was an added benefit.
“Well, obviously, it’s one of my favorite partnerships now because my son and I are doing it together,” Dwyane told Adweek. “How cool is that?”
The elder Wade, who’s spent the larger part of his two-decade-long career navigating brand sponsorships prior to becoming a full-time entrepreneur, told Adweek that unlike other sponsorships “where you try to make it fit,” the partnership with Thorne was an organic one that “just flows.”
“My family and I had been using Thorne for the past few years already, and now I have an opportunity because of our partnership to get a little bit more information on what the products are and how I can use [them] to best benefit me.”
