Project background Ever since its founding in 1905, Red Wing Shoe Company operates from the town of Red Wing, Minnesota in the US. The company started in the industrial footwear business, and has expanded with two more business fields over the years; Outdoor sports shoes and Lifestyle. In 2000, Red Wing Shoe Company introduced the heritage line, a selection of old worker-boots inspired designs, under the brand Red Wing Shoes in the European lifestyle market. Today, Red Wing Shoes offers the lifestyle boots in twelve European countries. European brand development is currently in differing stages per country. Overall, the European lifestyle department is unprofitable to this point. In order to increase sales, Red Wing Shoes needs to find increased connection to the target consumers. The research question for this project is: How can the brand Red Wing Shoes can get connected to its target consumers in the European market. Therefore, consumer touchpoints are designed, i.e. the channels for interaction between brand and consumer (Wheeler, 2009). Research activities Research defined what message the brand should reflect outward to affect the target consumer and where and how the brand should communicate in order to reach them. The research as performed is divided by three domains. Internal analysis, External analysis and Touchpoint analysis. Based on data analysis, the brand proposition is developed, stating the main benefits consumers derive from the brand in the European market. In order to actualize this proposition, guiding principles for brand behaviour are put up in a brand manifest. An idea-generation session with the target group is performed to generate ideas on how touchpoints can connect the brand to the target consumer. Based on the ideas, seven concepts were developed. Criteria distilled from research led to the selection of one concept for detail design. This concept was detailed guided by the brand manifest to ensure it contributes to the actualization of the brand proposition. Results Red Wing Shoes proposes independency and integrity as the main benefits consumers derive from the brand. Marketing should thereby mainly focus on men between 26 and 34. This category undergoes a transition in which they grow independent from peers and need to make choices in their lifes. Red Wing Shoes independence and integrity facilitates this transition. Two brand assets are mainly important for the brand to make explicit. The brand’s craftsmen are an authentic asset which should be shown to prove authenticity of the company. Brand communication should shift emphasis from history to heritage as the heritage provides reassurance for consumers. Besides proving the authenticity, Red Wing Shoes should involve loyal consumers in the brand’s conversations. Consumers eventually determine the brand meaning, i.e. the symbolic resonance and today’s relevance. The most important touchpoints consumers consult are the brand website, independent blogs and websites, the retailer and other consumers. The design process aimed to integrate these touchpoints in the final design. The premium prices combined with little brand awareness among consumers create a high risk perception regarding the purchase of a pair of Red Wings. Therefore, consumers often conduct more research on the brand prior to purchase. It is therefore important to create and maintain brand touchpoints inside and outside the retail environment. How Furthermore, the design should facilitate regular innovation. Innovation is important to nourish relations with retailers and agents. Establising good B2B relationships nurtures and maintains the current distribution channel, which provides the brand with a competitive advantage over direct competitors. Second, innovation keeps up attention from bloggers who post on the brand and thereby advertise the brand towards consumers. The European department has a limited marketing budget. Therefore, the objective was to limit the costs for the design. Combining the need for innovation with the limited budget led to the design requirement to facilitate innovation over multiple seasons. Further, realisation and implementation should be feasible with current manpower. Final design The final design is an exhibition of a brand asset displayed in-store and online. Twice a year, a new exhibition exposes an other brand asset. The first two exhibitions expose the consumers and the craftsmen. This innovation stimulates bloggers and independent websites to post on the brand regularly and nourishes the relations with retailers and agents. By creating a platform which facilitates regular innovation over six seasons, the costs for the touchpoints per season are limited.