Dr. Martens is making strides in sustainable material innovation with its latest Genix Nappa collection. This initiative reflects the brand’s commitment to creating durable footwear while significantly lowering environmental impacts. The new Genix Nappa material is developed by re-engineering leather offcuts, which are traditionally destined for landfill, into a pioneering product that does not compromise the brand’s noted durability and comfort.
To effectively articulate this complex innovation, Dr. Martens has enlisted the creative services of Syn, a long-standing and trusted agency partner. Michael Boaler, EMEA Head of Marketing & Global Media at Dr. Martens, discussed the collaboration: “Sustainability is a sensitive subject so we were keen to be open and transparent in the content we shared with our wearers. Additionally, the production process for Genix Nappa is relatively complex which added a layer of needing to keep it simple while not leaving anything out. Syn did a great job of ensuring we told this innovation story honestly by capturing the material, process and product in a way that is easy for our wearers to follow and understand.”
The campaign’s visual and narrative elements were designed to mirror Dr. Martens‘ ethos of responsible production. Every aspect of the campaign was informed by a raw and honest aesthetic, a creative direction developed by Syn to reflect the brand’s sustainable production approach.
Paul Birkhead, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Syn, described the project as deeply collaborative and driven by passion: “One of those passion projects that everyone involved from both agency and brand were all in on. The timings were tight and the story that needed to be told was massively important so it relied on a true collaboration between the team at Dr. Martens and ourselves. The outcome is one that we are particularly proud of. A complex process distilled into a simple narrative and told in a tactile and transparent way.”
Hope Williams, Senior Account Manager at Syn, elaborated on the narrative approach: “Genix Nappa is a new story for Dr. Martens, so we needed to explore and pin down how to tell a sustainable material story through the Dr. Martens lens. The aim was to document the people and processes that are going into their future-facing products, so we decided to film in the factory itself so we could hero ‘the way’ and unpack ‘the why’. Thanks to our intimate knowledge of the Dr. Martens brand we already knew how to capture product, but for this we wanted to focus on the process. We felt an innovation with sustainability at its core should be shown not sold, and being transparent about the aims and authentic processes was important in both informing consumers of the new technology and highlighting that it’s not yet perfect, but part of Dr. Martens’ process to becoming more sustainable.”
The campaign combines analogue and digital content to narrate the product and material stories, emphasizing responsible innovation alongside the quality and durability expected from Dr. Martens. Syn continues to be a creative powerhouse, trusted by leading global brands to deliver comprehensive branding, campaign strategies, and complex international roll-outs.