Vans Holiday
Gift Guide
Problem to Solve
Drive engagement on Vans.com during the holiday season.
My Approach
I developed an interactive holiday campaign centered around a browser-based video game inspired by classic arcade and NES titles. The experience extended beyond digital through custom arcade cabinets installed in Vans flagship stores nationwide.
My Role
I led the project from concept to launch, overseeing creative direction, gameplay development, visual identity, developer collaboration, sound design, and the design of the arcade cabinet experience.
Creative Direction: Josh McLeod & Matt Shipman
Art Direction: Josh McLeod
Sound Design: Josh McLeod
Game Development: Nick Rickenbach
Production: Vannie Ly
Wafflin’
scored big…
The campaign became Vans’ most successful holiday engagement initiative ever - significantly increasing site traffic and conversion, as well as boosting awareness of the recently created Vans Family Rewards Program, and established a new benchmark for seasonal digital experiences at Vans.
Retail and Ecommerce Photography Direction
To extend the digital world of the campaign into the ecommerce experience, I also art directed the holiday product photography shoot. The goal was to blur the line between the game and the real world by physically recreating elements from “Wafflin’” as large-scale practical sets.
At the center of the shoot was a custom-built waffle house, surrounded by oversized breakfast-themed props and environments pulled directly from the game itself. Footwear and featured products were photographed within these miniature worlds, creating a cohesive visual language between the interactive campaign and the ecommerce experience.
I led the creative direction of the shoot from concept through execution, working closely with set builders, photographers, and stylists to ensure every detail felt playful, immersive, and unmistakably Vans.
At hallmark stores throughout the United States, we did full retail store takeovers with massive displays that included playable videogames.
