Come in, grab a seat, and let us tell you all about our “THE61S” project that we worked on together for over the past 5 months.

Back in April, our team came up with a crazy, sudden idea, which was to bring together 61 strangers in one room to showcase our 61 shirt sizes. Working with such a diverse group of individuals meant that the time passed quickly (as you could imagine the huge workload). However, we really did enjoy spending time with our 61 participants from all walks of life – we just couldn’t wait for the launch day to come!

Everything begins with an application form

The campaign kicked off in late April with the start of our recruitment drive, which received an overwhelming response. Once all applications were in, we reviewed each application carefully with reference to the information submitted by the applicants. At the end, we selected 61 individuals based on their shirt sizes and backgrounds. This is where it all begins.

Strangers on board

The first photo shoot took place on Father’s Day, and each participant was asked to pose for a photo in an indoor studio. The most exciting part - details of the shooting session weren’t revealed until arrival, which meant that our participants had no idea that they were about to meet the other 60 strangers!

The wait for the photo shoot provided a valuable opportunity for the participants to break the ice and get to know each other. To begin with, most of the participants seemed rather nervous at the sight of professional photography equipment, but they soon felt at ease and started to chat with each other about their work and family life, including their plans for Father’s Day.

“I took many pictures so I can show off in front of my kids later.”

“I have a 4-year-old daughter too! We are going to eat out tonight to celebrate Father’s Day.”

“Same here. My daughter asked why I dressed myself up on a Father’s Day morning, and my wife asked if I was having an affair. I really couldn’t explain it away!”

A melting pot of different ideas and personalities

During the wait for the photo shoot, we also took the time to get to know our participants better. Aged between 19 and 60, the participants came from all walks of life and had different personalities. In addition to a professional arborist, semi-retired CEO, former member of the Hong Kong water polo team, a university student, and a theatre worker, the group also included two brothers!

Braving the summer heat

After the team had got to know each of the participants during the first photo shoot, we invited a small group to take part in a thematic video shoot. Compared with the previous shoot, this session was a real test of the participants’ modelling skills, and also took more time to complete.

According to the weather forecast, the shooting session was set to be held on the only day of fine weather in that week. However, it wasn’t clear whether this was a blessing or a curse – with such high temperatures, our photographers were worried that the participants would struggle to keep cool. Thankfully, everyone rose to the challenge and the photo shoot was a resounding success.

“You may get into the shuttle bus first. Don’t get sunburned!”

“It is totally fine!”

“Fine for me too. This reminds me of the good old days at orientation camps when I was a university student.”

61 voices and thoughts all in one room

We invited our participants to take part in an interview and share their experiences of life under the themes of“perseverance”, “inspiration”, “happiness” and “support”. By bringing together 61 people with different voices and thoughts, we had the chance to gain an insight into the stories and motivations that shape their lives.

“When my child was born, I gave up a stable job to start my own business”.

“I love my girlfriend – she makes me really happy.”

“Cloud Atlas was really inspirational”.

Igniting new possibilities

After the shooting sessions, we followed our participants on Instagram, and noticed that many of them had already added each other as friends! One of the participants (the wedding planner) told us that he had invited others from the photo shoot to attend his upcoming exhibition; someone also told us the plan of becoming a sports teacher; someone shared with us his journey of starting a new business.

As these stories demonstrate, our “THE61S” was much more than a simple marketing campaign – by bringing together people from different backgrounds, we had ignited new possibilities here.

Many thanks once again to everyone who participated!