Skate culture is notorious for valuing individuality, creativity, and authenticity. Hitting a wrong note with this audience can cause skepticism and even backlash, especially if it looks like their style is being co-opted or appropriated.

So when Converse wanted to reach skaters to grow brand love we needed to make sure that our approach would resonate with this micro community in a legitimate way. To hit the right tone, we ensured our experience was built by skaters, for skaters.

We created Soundskates: A Sonic Skate Jam, which formed a collision point for style, music, community, and skateboarding. Working alongside skate pioneer Gord Hardie (founder of iconic skate shop Blue Tile Lounge), we built an immersive indoor skatepark including sound-activated skate ramps. Skater and DJ Louke Man curated an ethereal sound environment, sampling the sounds from the ramps to create a bespoke soundtrack for skaters to skate to.

Hot on the heels of 14 skate parks closing down during the pandemic, Soundskates became a place for core skaters and skate-adjacent community members to meet, skate, and bond, not only for the invitation-only launch event – which seeded VIPs with Converse skate shoes – but for the weekend to follow, which was open to everyone.

Extending the activation, we worked with Kadence World to build the first skateable billboard on Ossington, creating a place for skaters to congregate and ride. Maybe even more notable is that following the event we donated all skate ramps used in the Soundskates space to skate parks in Toronto.