Backdrop x New York: Where Regional Opportunity Meets Color.
THE ASK
Find a problem in the state of New York. Match it with a brand. Solve.
THE OPPORTUNITY
Forget Manhattan's concrete jungle, which would be the obvious way in. We discovered Upstate New York’s home to some of America's oldest homes, and the maximalist design lovers who inhabit them.
THE SOLUTION
Introduce Backdrop Paint to Upstate New York, where paint empowers bold choices in historic homes.
METHODOLOGYHere’s what we did to get to our solution.
Transforming a state into a full-blown creative campaign was no easy feat. This one required extensive research for us to identify the juiciest problems to solve.
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To find the right problems to tackle, we tapped into our school’s diverse community. Even better, a friend visiting family in Upstate New York connected us with 10 people who live in historic homes.
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Lots of it. We scrolled through Upstate NY TikTok, lurked in Reddit forums filled with proud New Yorkers, and studied forums by home design experts.
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With so many brands to potentially choose from, we had to narrow it down. A few trips to Home Depot to see what was actually on the shelves helped the most.
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We examined the broader cultural shift toward maximalism and craftsmanship in home design, along with how industries like fashion and furniture are moving away from minimalism.
Let’s start from the top.
OPPORTUNITYUpstate New York is a living museum with some of the oldest homes in America.
Through our research, we learned that Upstate New York boasts some of the oldest housing stock in the country. Cities like Buffalo and Rochester are filled with homes that are living testaments to craftsmanship, history, and character.
TARGETThis led us to focus on a niche community: historic home-dwellers.
We sent out a survey to better understand the motivations behind why they choose historic homes over modern ones.
“My house has charm and quirks I’ve grown to love over time.”
“I only modernize for convenience – central air, waterproofing, leaky faucets. It’s important to me not to turn this home into an HGTV knockoff.”
“I lean into what the house is already giving me.”
INSIGHTHistoric home-dwellers reject modernity and embrace tradition.
What we uncovered was more than just people living in old housing stock. We found a passionate community of historic home preservationists who actively reject the homogenized design narrative of modern minimalism.
The Beige-Washing of American Homes
To find the perfect brand to champion our target, we looked to the paint industry for its low-barrier entry point in home transformation.
But the deeper we looked, the more we realized the industry had also fallen into the same trap as modern home design: a world of “millennial gray” and WAY too many shades of white.
Enter Backdrop, a brand that colors outside the lines.
We actually talked to an interior designer, who introduced us to Backdrop. Through our brand analysis, it became clear that Backdrop isn’t just a paint brand; they’re a statement against conformity.
PROBLEMDespite standing out in the category, Backdrop’s biggest hurdle is low brand awareness.
A DTC brand with no retail presence, they struggle to compete with big-box brands that favor mass appeal over individuality. To grow, Backdrop needs to expand its niche audience.
And we knew just the community that could help.
WHY THIS WORKSBackdrop and historic-home dwellers are the perfect match. Here’s why:
An aging housing stock is a key indicator for a growing remodeling market.
With 51.4% of New York’s housing considered historic, there’s a substantial market for restoration and renovation.
STRATEGYTimeless homes deserve fearless color.
CREATIVE CAMPAIGNBackdrop: Paint Your Old Bold
Our campaign empowers historic homeowners to showcase the vibrant personalities within their seemingly quiet homes.
OUT-OF-HOME:We incorporate Backdrop's signature paint colors by name directly into our OOH, complete with easy-to-access website links.
EXPERIENTIAL:Backdrop converts a historic Binghamton home at the LUMA festival into an immersive exhibit, using projection mapping to digitally paint homes.
REFLECTIONThis campaign puts Backdrop on the map as the paint brand for historic home-dwellers in Upstate New York. But its influence reaches far beyond the region.
A Washington Post feature reveals how paint choices can expose deeper societal tensions around gentrification. Looking ahead, Backdrop can actively equip communities with the tools to resist uniformity and protect their architectural narratives, making a lasting impact that speaks to real needs for real people.
TEAMBianca Cherry (Art Director)
Smera Dhal (Art Director)
Darien Games (Copywriter)
Alicia Rydel (Experience Designer)
