Nike appoints Amsterdam-based S-W-H to agency roster

LONDON - Nike has appointed Amsterdam-based ad agency S-W-H (Schaeffer-W眉nsch-Has) to its roster and produced its first campaign together, which features a parody of the Amsterdam flag and a nod to the highly rated Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

The press and online campaign for the sportswear giant is running in Metro International and across Facebook, Hyves and MySpace.

The campaign is based around the recent news that Ajax footballer Huntelaar is set to leave the Amsterdam-based club for Spanish giants Real Madrid during the January transfer window.

Huntelaar scored an impressive 33 goals for Ajax last season, becoming the leading scorer in the Eredivisie, the Netherland's top-flight football league.

The ad acknowledges that the striker will be sorely missed by Ajax fans given Huntelaar's prolific goal scoring record and online banner ads will run across numerous Ajax fan websites.

Lode Schaeffer, creative director and partner at , said: "When Nike brought this to our attention, we really wanted to send out a message to Ajax fans that they could really identify with.

"The ad really does say it all -- it's exactly what Ajax fans are now thinking. The message pays tribute to how much Huntelaar will be missed and reflects how much of an impact he has had at Ajax."

The campaign was created by S-W-H's Lode Schaeffer, Lysbeth Bijlstra, Declan Stone and Garech Stone.

Graphic Design was completed by Declan in conjunction with Garech Stone and Mischa van Oss from S-W-H. Online activity was handled by S-W-H's Jasper Baartmans with a concept from Joris Kang'eri and Floris van den Elshout.

Mark Aink, S-W-H's managing partner, said: "Nike is world-renowned for their creative approach to advertising and we look forward to adding our idiom to that legacy.  Our task, together with Nike, is to create work that reverberates amongst the audience.

"We should be right at the pulse and engage people with the brand again. Currently we're working on six campaigns which should see the light of day starting early next year"

S-W-H was founded in 1997 by Dutch creative Lode Schaeffer who, together with managing partner Mark Aink, owns and leads the agency.

The agency's clients include the Dutch Tax Office, Bolletje, Domino's Pizza, Eiffel Consultancy, Energy:Direct, Radio 538, Simyo, and Leaf International.