Converse wants to get closer to its consumers. They decided to open up a recording studio where Converse-approved artists can record music tracks for free.Converse has announced that a 5,200 square foot space in Willamsburg, Brooklyn will be converted into a recording studio by the end of the year.
Musicians will submit applications online and those deemed worthy will be granted studio time to provide them with a helpful boost that many struggling artists most certainly need. The musicians will maintain all rights for the music created in the studio and Converse claim that it doesn’t intend to use any of the tracks created in advertising.
Where is the value for Converse then? Well, they connect more with consumers. It gives them the opportunity to discover the next big name. That way, they are gaining credibility among the creative types. Through the brand, many artists can make a recording. Without the help of Converse, that would have been impossible for most of them.
Converse chief marketing officer Geoff Cottrill came up with the idea and described the project in an interview with the New York Times as; "Think of a cul-de-sac with four garages, and in those garages are four bands… On the street are all the big brands of the world — Coke, Apple, the car companies — standing there waiting for the garage door to open and the cool band to step out so they can tell them they’re going to make them famous. But I would venture to say that inside those garages those kids are already wearing our shoes".
