Odds: changing the pair instead of the customer

Read the campaign story

Adidas Odds addressed a practical mismatch in a familiar retail unit: shoes are usually sold as a left-and-right pair, while some athletes need two shoes for the same foot. In 2016, the brand introduced an initiative offering two lefts or two rights. Communication featured runner Major D. P. Singh and connected the altered pair with the needs of athletes who use a prosthesis on one side.

Contemporary trade reporting credits Taproot Dentsu and describes the film-led launch. The One Club’s archive confirms the same-side shoe concept and places the launch during the 2016 Paralympic period, although the award listing itself is dated 2017. The award year is not the launch year. These sources document a product-and-communication idea; they do not establish universal availability, long-term fulfilment or suitability for every person with a disability.

The editorial mechanism is a change to the assumed default. Instead of asking a customer to buy an unsuitable standard bundle, the offer changes the bundle. That makes inclusion visible in the transaction itself, rather than only in casting or a motivational slogan. A modest adjustment can have strong explanatory power when audiences immediately understand both the old convention and the inconvenience it creates for someone else.

A small retailer could begin by asking customers where its standard quantities, packaging or appointment rules create avoidable waste. Choose a low-risk variation that can be supplied reliably and co-design it with the people who would use it. Calculate stock handling, pricing and return arrangements before promotion. Accessibility work should be paid and credited where appropriate, not treated as free inspiration gathered from customers for an advertising story.

The limits of the example are important. Disability is not one uniform need, and a same-side pair is not a substitute for individual fitting or specialist advice. Avoid repeating heroic language that makes participation depend on exceptional determination. Measure completed suitable orders, customer feedback and service reliability, rather than publicity alone. The case offers a concrete planning question: which apparently normal part of the buying process is actually a choice the business could change? Answering that question may create a more credible message than adding another declaration that everyone is welcome.

Question the default unit

Look for customers who cannot use the standard bundle.

Co-design fulfilment

Work with affected users on availability, price and returns.

Avoid universal claims

Describe the specific need served rather than claiming accessibility for everyone.

A small test for another brief

Pilot a low-risk alternative to an unsuitable standard retail bundle.

Suitable completed orders and customer satisfaction.

Pause if the promised variation cannot be supplied reliably.

• Interview and compensate customers who face the mismatch.
• Agree a feasible bundle, price and return policy.
• Pilot a small quantity and review actual fulfilment.