Northern Light

Instead of the traditional holiday gift guide, the beloved Canadian lifestyle brand Roots has changed the game with their Holiday 2017 event, Northern Light. The experiential event took place in Toronto on November 21, 2017 and combined live music, technology, art and fashion, with guests being able to shop the collection as they were seeing it walk down the runway using the “Roots Live” mobile app.

An original video viewed on huge screens covering three walls of the venue acted as the backdrop for the fashion show. The video also featured life-sized models, which, at times, looked so realistic that they could be mistaken for the real models walking the runway. The entire video was shot the video on a green screen and then had animators custom animate all of the backgrounds to put the models in. There is a surreal sense of reality and a blend between the dreamy and mystical aspects of the holidays paired with what is in the room to really give you a sensory overload.

Social Media Integration

A multi-camera crew live-streamed the entire event on Facebook Live. A comprehensive paid social media campaign created buzz for the event before the live broadcast, during the live stream and after the event. The entire stream garnered over 1MM video views. 

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Roots LIVE

“The [app] works a lot like Shazam but for live events,” James Connell, VP of E-Commerce and Marketing for Roots, tells Teen Vogue. “It scans the music that’s in the room and will pick up the ultrasonic sound waves, populating the screen with all of the individual products you are seeing on stage. Obviously it is very see-now-buy-now, unlike many other events, where you have to go somewhere else to purchase after the fact.”

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Entertainment

The event concluded with a performance by JUNO Award Winning multi-platinum recording artist Ruth B, who sang two of her songs including her hit single, “Lost Boy”, and a classic Christmas song to set the holiday spirit. The entire event was streamed live through a Facebook Live video, truly making this a global experience.