I spent one year as a copywriter in-house at Criquet Shirts, a men’s shirt brand based in Austin, Texas.
I’d been interested in trying out the creative side of things for a while, and this was a great opportunity with great people to do just that.
Criquet makes shirts, jackets, and other menswear inspired by vintage golf shirts of the 70s and 80s, but updated (and upgraded) for the modern man.
They are for laid back dudes who are equal parts put together and unconventional. Criquet calls this way of life “comfortably off-course,” and seeks to find themselves there every day.
what i did
I led concept presentations and wrote TV scripts, pre-roll, web content, paid & organic social, emails, and more.
As a growing brand with mostly-local fame, the goal of most large media buys was to increase brand awareness.
And since there was no strategy team, I also acted as the strategist by writing my own creative briefs.
Pre-roll
Insight: Unbuttoning a polo is man’s version of letting your hair down after a long day.
Concept: Unbutton Up– You can read a man by how buttoned, or unbuttoned, he’s wearing his polo.
TV
Insight: True vintage wear comes with baggage: it’s hard to find, may not fit well, and potentially pretty smelly (ahem, 70s polyester).
Concept: Vintage Evolved– What if the vintage shirts we all love were made today?
Pre-roll and TV spots were shot and produced by the talented folks at Cold Collaborative.
Social
Our AD and designer were on a shoot this week, so I had to learn Adobe Premiere basics to put this together. I’m no art director, as you can see, but it was fun.
I introduced a new voice for Criquet’s twitter feed: Carl the caddie. He’s a “life caddie”, helping people stay comfortably off-course.
I created Carl’s personality (offbeat approachability) and tone of voice (mysteriously wise).
Run free, Carl.
Carl’s visual identity (as well as Criquet’s brand design) was created by the legendary Sam O’Brien at Sample Co.
Carl typically interacted with with local breweries, dive bars, and sports in Austin.
But once, Carl got some recognition from the Lone Star, the National Beer of Texas.
All art direction and other design work were done by Sam Frederick and Allie McGuffin. They were a great team and helped make my time at Criquet worth sharing.