Writing Sample (Case Study) - The Elkay Neighborhood

Company: August Jackson

My Role: Marketing Manager

August Jackson designed Elkay's trade show booth at the 2019 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show. We were honored with the Best Large Booth Award. In order to showcase our work, I wrote the following case study. I also edited all of the photos and added the case study to the August Jackson website.

CLICK HERE to view the case study online.

CLICK HERE to view the press release I wrote to announce the KBIS Best Large Booth Award.

CLICK HERE to view the video highlight I produced to visually showcase the work.

Case study writeup:

PURPOSE

If you’ve ever sipped from a water fountain or filled a water bottle at the airport, then you know Elkay. Ever lived somewhere with a stainless-steel sink? Then you’ve also met Elkay. So how do you showcase a brand that is so ingrained in our day-to-day lives that we may not consciously acknowledge it? And, conversely, how do you make Elkay stand out amongst their biggest competitors at the nation’s largest kitchen and bath trade show? This campaign set out to raise Elkay’s profile and drive a deeper connection to the impact and true identity of the overall brand.

COMMUNITY

90,000 attendees, 600 exhibitors, and 500 members of the media at the 2020 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show

CHALLENGE

Elkay wanted to create an experiential moment that would shine a spotlight on their family values and commitment to their people. This year was also Elkay’s 100th anniversary, and they hoped to simultaneously celebrate their history and showcase the work they’re doing to impact the future of their industry. Finally, Elkay was ready to break away from the blueprint of expected and typical booth design. They wanted their experience to rise above a sea of sameness and take their visitors on a storied and unforgettable journey.

APPROACH

When you think of friendliness, home and family, what comes to mind? A neighborhood community, of course. We created a world in the form of a 9,000-square foot experience called The Elkay Neighborhood, capturing Elkay’s playful spirit, while immersively displaying their vast array of sinks, faucets and water solutions.

The neighborhood was an intricate and exciting jaunt through the Elkay story, placing their products in familiar community scenarios, all while transforming a cold exhibit space into a cohesive, inviting community space. Activations honored Elkay’s first 1920’s kitchen and walked guests through a timeline of their history and their newest innovations for the future. Designed like charming houses, side-by-side vignettes featured the many sink innovations in each area of the home (from the laundry room to the bar).

At the community pool, visitors could jump into a ball pit amidst the backdrop of a giant ezH2O water bottle filling station, showcasing Elkay’s commitment to sustainability via the 20 billion (and growing) plastic bottles Elkay has saved from the environment.

The focal point of The Elkay Neighborhood was the three-tier fountain made of Elkay faucet designs. Around the fountain, visitors could experience the Health and Flavor Garden while voting on the next Smartwell flavor and learning about the health statistics behind choosing bubble water over soda.

The final company celebration,“The Great Katzby,” nodded to Elkay Founder Leopold Katz. We handled logistics and environmental branding for the party, including thematic touches like flapper dancers, a cigar rolling station, and a rousing Charleston dance lesson.

IMPACT

The Elkay Neighborhood was an immersive, exciting and joyous experience for every visitor that set foot in the space. The activation cemented Elkay’s reputation for anyone it touched. Plus, the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show honored the exhibit with the Best Large Booth Award. Guests truly embraced the moment: 140 photos were captured in the 1920’s kitchen photo booth, visitors enjoyed over 5,000 Smartwell tasting samples, and 808 votes were cast for the best flavor (with Pineapple as the ultimate winner). Media impressions reached 3.4 million. Based on data from the custom event application we created, over 3,000 leads were generated.

Elkay prides itself on its quality products, meaningful innovations and the wonderful people that make it all happen every single day. We wanted a booth to be a celebration of all that and leave people feeling inspired, entertained and a part of our community. The booth that August Jackson was able to bring to life did just that and allowed the brand to shine at one of the biggest industry events of the year.

MOLLY PAJAUSKAS, MARKETING DIRECTOR, ELKAY