Levi`s: LEVI'S TOOLS (Case Study)

Credits & Description:

Entry URL: http://thevoted.com/levis/levis-tools/
Type of entry: Social
Category: Applications / Tools
Advertiser: LEVI STRAUSS & CO.
Product/Service: APPAREL
Agency: AKQA New York, USA

Client: LEVI STRAUSS & CO.
Product: APPAREL
Entrant: AKQA New York, USA
Type of Entry: Social
Category: Applications / Tools
Entrant Company : AKQA New York, USA
Advertising Agency : AKQA San Francisco, USA
Advertising Agency 2 : FAKE LOVE New York, USA

Executive Creative Director: Neil Robinson (AKQA)
Creative Director: Paul Nowikowski (AKQA)
Executive Producer: Mike Murray (AKQA)
Art Director: Sergio Vilatimo (AKQA)
Copywriter: Paul Bootlis (AKQA)
Account Director: Louisa Moya (AKQA)
Account Director: Karen Patrick (AKQA)
Account Director: Ted Burdett (AKQA)

Creative Execution:
The Tools were a true hybrid of old and new. Every analog switch was repurposed. For example, a dial on the Graflex camera chose Instagram filters.

Familiar digital interfaces were also given physical form. Nixie tubes on the Underwood typewriter counted down characters remaining for tweets.

Many innovative hardware and software add-ons were used, like custom circuit boards and Raspberry Pi modules as the brains inside each device.

Additionally, artists and influencers on the train tour were each given RFID bracelets for instant sharing.


The Tools captured the imaginations of people around the world – with a total of 433 million global media impressions, and 2.3 million social impressions created. An authentic connection was made between Levi’s, the brand’s ambassadors, and fans. The campaign received glowing reviews from innovation-focused and culturally relevant publications like Wired, Rolling Stone, The New York Times and Vice magazine.


In Fall 2013, Levi’s released updated icons, such as the 501®.

The launch happened as part of Station to Station, a project that saw a vintage train repurposed into a moving art studio. Touring across the US, the train showcased some of today’s most innovative artists and thought-leaders.

We had to find a way for Levi’s to equip these cultural pioneers, so they could generate content, share it from the train in real-time, and inspire ‘makers’ everywhere.

We decided to invent branded communications tools that would connect the worlds of analog and digital whilst exuding their own timeless style – just like Levi’s.

These tools would have to inspire in their own right, and be an authentic connection point between the brand’s ambassadors, and fans around the world.

Levi’s Tools were born: iconic instruments of the past, deconstructed and repurposed into 21st century social devices.