Since its launch in 2015, STōK Cold Brew Coffee has taken the ready-to-drink (RTD) coffee market by storm, doubling in size over the last three years. Despite its rapid growth, the RTD coffee category still holds only 14% household penetration, with STōK accounting for 4% of HHP and gaining traction while competitors struggle. However, data revealed a gap in brand awareness and share of voice, leading STōK to embark on its first-ever national campaign—one designed to be bold, disruptive, and impossible to ignore.

The Strategy: A Disruptive, Culturally Relevant Campaign

To cut through the noise, STōK needed a campaign that didn’t just look like advertising—it had to entertain, engage, and spark conversations. Enter Wrexham AFC, a football team that captured global attention thanks to its Hollywood-backed revival. The club, the town, and its community provided the perfect platform for STōK to make an unexpected and high-impact move: sponsoring the naming rights to Wrexham Racecourse Ground, now known as the STōK Cae Ras.

This partnership aligned perfectly with STōK’s bold personality. Sponsoring a football stadium in a country where cold brew isn’t mainstream? That’s as audacious as it gets. To introduce the sponsorship in an unforgettable way, STōK leveraged Maximum Effort, the creative agency behind Wrexham AFC’s Hollywood narrative, to craft a campaign that blended humor, culture, and brand storytelling.

The Execution: A Viral, Digital-First Approach

STōK’s campaign kicked off with the Secret Replacement video, a 30-second ad that played on the cultural contrast of Wrexham’s tea-loving traditions versus America’s cold brew obsession. The hilarious, chairmen-led prank saw Wrexham AFC players unknowingly swapping their usual teatime for STōK Cold Brew—an instant conversation starter.

To maximize impact, STōK focused its marketing firepower on a digital-first, earned-media strategy. Instead of spreading efforts thin across multiple tactics, the brand flooded digital and social channels with the campaign, ensuring that consumers couldn’t miss it. The timing was also critical—May 25, 2023, a day when media coverage surrounding Wrexham AFC was at its peak.

Sustaining the Momentum

STōK didn’t stop after the initial buzz. The brand remained front and center throughout the Wrexham U.S.A. Invasion, where the team played against Premier League and MLS teams in the U.S. STōK further cemented its presence through partnerships with the Men in Blazers podcast and targeted content running alongside the Welcome to Wrexham documentary.

The campaign culminated in early 2024 with STōK’s first-ever Super Bowl ad, featuring Sir Anthony Hopkins as Wrex the Dragon, Wrexham’s beloved mascot. The 30-second cinematic spot positioned STōK as the energy behind Sir Anthony’s fiery performance and landed the brand on AdWeek’s list of the 13 Best Super Bowl Commercials—an incredible feat for a regional ad.

The Results: Record-Breaking Growth and Brand Awareness

STōK’s partnership with Wrexham AFC delivered phenomenal results:

• $5M in incremental sales and doubled household penetration within the first three months.
• Category-leading growth: +11% HHP, +26% dollar sales, and +17% volume sales, while competitors struggled.
• 14+ billion impressions across digital, social, and earned media.
• Unprecedented Instagram engagement: 92% of the annual follower growth target achieved in just one day, 826K+ impressions above benchmarks, and a 2794% increase in reach rate.
• 365 pieces of earned media coverage across major outlets like ESPN, Associated Press, People Magazine, Adweek, and The Athletic.
• 99% positive/neutral sentiment in earned media, reinforcing STōK’s status as a culturally relevant, buzzworthy brand.

A Bold Future for STōK Cold Brew

STōK Cold Brew’s partnership with Wrexham AFC proved that thinking outside the box and tapping into cultural moments can yield massive brand growth. By combining humor, entertainment, and a truly unexpected sponsorship, STōK not only increased brand awareness but also redefined what it means to market cold brew coffee in today’s digital-first world.

As STōK continues its momentum, one thing is clear: this brand has no chill when it comes to making bold moves.

Why is Experiential Marketing Campaigns the need of the hour? Is it really effective? In our opinion, experiential marketing helps a brand to get into the hearts and minds of its customers through a unique experience. An experience is remembered because it leaves you with emotion, whether it is a joyful emotion or a memorable expression. If a brand is able to stir the right positive emotions within their customers then they’re home! And the probability of customers turning into loyal consumers increases as today’s customer is looking for meaningful associations through experiences. It’s no more a mere one-time transaction for them. It’s definitely more impactful than just throwing up Facebook or Twitter ads or things like that.

Work events are really hit or miss. Let’s be honest: How many times have you found yourself anxiously fidgeting with a paper napkin in the corner of a stuffy networking happy hour?

Have you ever thought as to why events or trade shows or industry seminars don’t really make people come back? It’s not about the event. It’s about the experience people go through. An experiential marketing campaign like an entire area been designed to look and feel like a giant video game for a game promotion is much better than a normal kiosk or a verbose discourse at an event where many just yawn and forget and never come back. Then it’s no more a yet another exhausting event but an exciting experience to look forward to. That’s what experiential marketing is all about.

Refinery29: 29Rooms

An interactive funhouse of style, culture, & technology #ExpandYourReality

So how is it done really? And how can you use it to make maximum impact? After a relentless search, we have found 5 examples of effective experiential marketing campaigns for you. Read on!

Adidas – Boston Marathon
The fitness brand Adidas gave every athlete in the race the star treatment by capturing their progress with a camera crew and RFID chips

We’re #HereToCreate Legend. Now every #BostonMarathon

 

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Feeling those post-marathon blues after such a rush of excitement and utter craziness yesterday… but fun to reflect back on the experience. Adidas created a little video for each and every competitor! Check yours out ???????? Go to the link in my bio, scroll down and type in your bib number, and VOILA! @adidasrunning #createdwithadidas #BostonMarathon #HereToCreate

A post shared by Amanda Nurse (@amandarunsboston) on Apr 17, 2018 at 5:27pm PDT

Red Bull Stratos

– Felix Baumgartner
See through the eyes of Felix Baumgartner as he completes his world record-breaking jump from the stratosphere!

Coca Cola FIFA World Cup AR Experience

Coca-Cola wanted to celebrate their continued support of the FIFA World Cup 2018, with an Augmented Reality experience that gave football fans the chance to play alongside Switzerland star Xherdan Shaqiri.

Listerine – Bring Out the Bold

Mercedes-Benz Invisible Car

Nike Unlimited Stadium

The world’s first full-size LED running track. The world’s most innovative training environment.

Tags:
Boston Athletic Association, Adidas, Experiential Marketing Campaigns, Fitness, RFID, Athlete, Refinery29, 29Rooms, Marketing Campaigns, Style, Culture, Technology, Interactive Campaigns, Boston Marathon, Felix Baumgartner, Red Bull Stratos, Red Bull Space Jump, AR, Augmented reality, Celebrity Endorsement, Coca-Cola, Digital, Out of Home, OOH, FIFA World Cup, Football, Sports, Xherdan Shaqiri, J. Walter Thompson, Listerine Bring Out the Bold, The Invisible Drive, Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes-Benz Invisible Car, Jung von Matt, Cannes Lions, Clio Grand Prix, One Show Awards, Andy Awards, Creative Circle Awards Grand Prix, Ad Stars Grand Prix, BBH Singapore, Nike, Nike Unlimited Stadium, Best Technology campaigns, Best Digital Campaigns