SHARON HILL, Pa. (March 19, 2015) – NATHAN Sports, the Running Essentials™ leader in creating purposefully-designed hydration, visibility and performance gear, is once again partnering with select run-specialty retailers nationwide, on the brand’s 2015 spring hydration campaign, “We Run on Water.” The campaign will kick off Friday, March 20th – the first day of spring – with a month of in-store events across the nation that will include trivia, prizes, product demonstrations, and group runs.

The launch of the “We Run on Water” campaign comes on the heels of the successful NATHAN 2014 hydration campaign, “What’s Your Hydration Plan?” The 2014 program not only resulted in growth for NATHAN, but stores that participated averaged 48% higher hydration category sales during the campaign.

“Hydration is essential to every athlete’s performance, but for many people it is still an afterthought during their run,” says Brent Hollowell, VP of Marketing for NATHAN. “The goal of “We Run on Water” is not just to drive growth of NATHAN hydration products, but to continue to educate customers on the importance of hydration before, during, and after their run, so that they can go stronger and longer.”

“We’ve developed close relationships with our retail partners, and every year we challenge ourselves to find more effective ways to help them expand their business. The stores that participate in our educational initiatives have seen the value and continue to ask us for more, and better, programs,” continued Hollowell. “After this year’s rough winter, the running community is ready to stretch their legs, put away their cold weather gear, and embrace a season of growth and renewal.”

Heading into the third year of retail education campaigns, NATHAN has revitalized its methodology for 2015 with an evolved approach to in-store education and integration of hydration, visibility, and running essentials. The “We Run on Water” campaign, along with fall’s “Fire Up Your Run” visibility campaign, are now part of a larger program called the “NATHAN School of Run”. Through this program, participating run specialty stores will appoint a qualified Nathan PRO as the in-store essentials leader to provide year-round support of hydration, visibility, and running gear.

The primary responsibility of NATHAN PROs is to be the in-store driving force behind “NATHAN School of Run” initiatives.  PROs must pass a certification test developed by NATHAN, and are then eligible for an incentive program that rewards them for engaging with customers on hydration education. Prizes include Nathan Bux to purchase discounted NATHAN products, gift cards for select retailers, and store pizza parties and happy hours. Eight PROs of the month will win an all-expenses paid trip to participate in a Ragnar Relay Race with members of the NATHAN team.

“One of the main reasons customers shop at run-specialty is that they know they will receive an unparalleled level of service because, just like them, the employees are runners with a passion for the sport,” Hollowell says. “We tapped into this with the “NATHAN School of Run” and have found that with proper training and tools, we can drive strong results across an underdeveloped category, while empowering employees to make an impact. Last year, stores with PROs averaged 98% higher essentials category sales than stores without PROs.”

To execute the spring campaign, PROs will use a retailer “Spring Demo Kit” created by NATHAN that includes in-store marketing materials, t-shirts, and product samples that can be used for demonstrations and product fittings. In addition, NATHAN will provide support and resources for the stores’ websites and social channels, to help drive traffic to the launch events.

ABOUT NATHAN

Driven by a keen understanding of athlete needs, NATHAN’s team of innovators sweat the details, because it’s the details that help athletes push their potential. As a market leader in groundbreaking Running Essentials™ products, NATHAN purposefully designs performance-driven gear that helps dedicated athletes run stronger and longer in 45 countries and counting.

NATHAN’s essential hydration, visibility and performance offerings targeted to road warriors, ultrarunners, triathletes, couch to 5Ker’s, and every dedicated athlete in between, include industry-leading and best-selling hydration vests, belts, handhelds, bottles, running paks, active visibility and reflective vests, and other outdoor gear essentials, all designed for a life in motion. Run stronger and longer at NathanSports.com, Tweet us @NathanPerfGear, and like us on Facebook @Nathan Performance Gear.


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