In a continued effort to portray itself as a modern brand that can reach young consumers, Samsonite Canada recently launched its “Bring It” campaign, north of the border.

Created with the global agency Iris, the campaign calls on travelers to explore uncharted territories, while touting the brand’s style, durability and lightweight offerings. The campaign also includes a partnership with Canadian beach volleyball Olympian Brandie Wilkerson, with the campaign timed to launch just ahead of the 2024 Summer Games in Paris where Wilkerson will compete.

Samsonite Canada brand manager Erin Reynolds says the “Bring It” campaign is the latest step to modernize a brand that’s more than a century old. Last year’s “Travel Like Your Parents” campaign took retro elements of the brand and applied modern style elements to complement its history, she says. This year, the brand’s goal was to bring its products into the future with the new creative.

“Samsonite is a historic brand. Sometimes that comes with old associations. And we wanted to become a brand with heritage, which is different from a heritage brand,” Reynolds tells strategy.

“It was really about taking the idea of travel and thinking about where’s travel going to bring us and how our products are going to help you get there.”

“Bring It” is built off of Samsonite’s consumer research that found travel consumers care most about luggage being lightweight but still durable, as well as modern and reflective of individual lifestyles. It also identified a growing casual travel segment, and that most of all, consumers want luggage they feel confident they can rely on.

The new creative has three segments responding to those research results. The first, which is out already, is “Bring On Gravity,” features Samsonite’s Proxis luggage, which has an outer shell for strength and resilience. The other two segments, launching later this year, will promote the Ecodiver’s water-resistant fabrics, and the Outline Pro’s polypropylene collection.

“A big part was that sense of reliability, that really came across. At the end of the day, people can care about a lot of different things when it comes to travel products, but they want to feel confident,” Reynolds says.

“We’re trying to take that idea of longevity in our brand and with our products. Luggage isn’t something people are going to go out and buy every year, they want it to last a long time.”

The “Bring It” campaign used virtual production and LED screens to create surrealist worlds within the “Bring It” campaign to add a futuristic element to its marketing.

The new Samsonite campaign was also heavily inspired by the brand’s 1982 “Survivor” creative (pictured below), which leaned into the pop culture of the time like Indiana Jones, featuring someone going into the wilderness with only their luggage.

As Samsonite tries to speak with a more youthful voice to reach younger consumers, Reynolds says the company is investing more heavily in brand marketing than it ever has in her more than a decade working for Samsonite. This has resulted in a bigger push for consuemr outreach campaigns, more influencer campaigns, and more sponsorships and partnerships that lean a bit younger.

The brand’s celebrity partnerships have included more youthful names like Saturday Night Live comedian Chloe Fineman, but Reynolds says there’s also been a global focus on partnering with athletes, which resonates with the idea of durability that they want associated with their products. Along with Wilkerson partnering with Samsonite in Canada, tennis star Casper Ruud, as well as the U.S. gymnastics team, have also partnered with the brand.

The new campaign in Canada is focusing on multi-channel marketing with in-store, OOH and digital assets launching as part of the campaign. Along with Iris handling creative, H&S oversaw PR for the campaign.