Stuff We Like: Janet Champ’s Nike Adverts

Not your normal trainer adverts

Nike’s advertising clout is well documented. From Spike Lee shooting hoops with Michael Jordan to King Kong in a pair of Lava High boots, the output of their go-to ad agency Wieden+Kennedy rank with some of the most popular adverts of the sportswear world. Janet Champ’s work in the early 90s might just be the cream of the crop.

Apparently a bit of a ‘real life Peggy Olsen’, the story goes that Champ was originally hired at W+K as a receptionist before she was asked if she had any ideas that could help the Swoosh boost their struggling sales to women. It turned out that she did… in fact, she had quite a few.

Cutting the tech chat in favour of poetic long form writing that spoke to actual real people, her revolutionary adverts shifted the focus away from athletes and towards the everyday. More in the line of motivational speeches than a tool to sell mass-produced running footwear, Champ’s work with creative director Charlotte Moore still resonates three decades on. 

Champ’s genius wasn’t limited to print either… the ‘If You Let Me Play’ public service spot from 1995 was a direct call to give girls more access to sports at a time when the playing field was anything but level. 

She was also involved in the team that made the classic ‘Revolution’ Air Max ad—a snappy MTV-flavoured montage which has the distinction of being the first (and apparently only) advert to feature licensed music by the Beatles (who later sued Nike for $15 million). 

It maybe not a surprise to hear that Champ is still at the forefront of powerful, meaningful advertising today… although to call her work ‘adverts’ would maybe be selling it short. Here are some of our favourites from her Nike years…

See more of Janet’s work here.

Like Nike? Here are some old ACG ads we’re big fans of.