Faded in Philly

the setup

Campaign Overview

Faded in Philly is a speculative city activation concept for Topicals, the clinical-grade skincare brand built for all skin types and tones.

Topicals has already proven it understands sports culture. Their "Smoothest in the Game" campaign partnered with NBA and WNBA athletes. Angel Reese invested in the brand. But every campaign so far has been national. No city has been claimed.

This concept proposes Philadelphia as the first. The timing is hard to argue with: LeBron James just signed with the 76ers in what he called his "last decision." The Sixers are projected to receive the maximum 34 national TV games this season, more than double last year. Every basketball fan in the country is watching Philly this year. Topicals should be here when they tune in.

Faded in Philly turns Wells Fargo Center into the first arena where skincare is part of game night. Not as a sponsorship logo on a scoreboard. As an experience women actually want.

This is a speculative campaign concept. All imagery is AI-generated for concept visualization.

the why

The Insight

Topicals' Faded line is clinically proven: 96% of users in a 4-week study reported more even skin tone. 84% saw dark spots become less visible. The new Faded Dark Spot Peel Pads smooth skin after a single use and improve discoloration in as little as one week.

The product works. The gap isn't science. It's placement.

Skincare lives in bathrooms, bedside tables, Sephora shelves. It doesn't live in arenas, stadiums, or postgame routines. But the women buying Topicals are the same women filling lower-bowl seats at Sixers games, signing up for pregame pilates events that sell out in hours, and wearing under-eye masks on their Instagram stories. The audience already exists. No beauty brand has met them at the game.

Philadelphia specifically is a city where sports aren't a hobby. They're identity. Women here don't just watch, they show up. The Eagles' public practice filled an entire stadium and it wasn't even a real game. This is a city that treats fandom as a lifestyle. Topicals' brand DNA (clinical results packaged in culture-forward, Gen-Z-native marketing) fits Philadelphia's energy perfectly. The only question is why they aren't here yet.

the playbook

The Activations

Faded in Philly is built around four connected activations that turn a single NBA season into a full market entry.

The Pregame

Topicals partners with a Philadelphia-based women's fitness community to host a pregame pilates class on the Wells Fargo Center court before a marquee Sixers game. 200 to 300 women in matching Topicals pink athletic sets. After the 50-minute class, facilitators walk through the crowd distributing Faded Peel Pads. 300 women, post-workout glow, wiping down with the product in unison on an NBA court. The class ends. The game starts. Every attendee walks from mat to seat with the same ticket.

The Glow Bar

Inside the Wells Fargo Center concourse, Topicals sets up a branded skincare station alongside the food and merch vendors. Faded Peel Pads, under-eye patches, a mirror wall for content. Skincare at a basketball game shouldn't feel unusual. It should feel like grabbing a soft pretzel. You're already here for two hours. Glow while you watch.

The Courtside Kit

A limited-edition Faded in Philly kit available exclusively at Wells Fargo Center and Philadelphia Sephora locations during the NBA season. The kit includes a 12-pack of Faded Peel Pads in 76ers-inspired packaging, two under-eye patch packets, a die-cut sticker sheet, and a pink drawstring pouch. Priced at $28 to stay in impulse-buy territory and match Topicals' existing pricing strategy.

The Content Play

10 to 15 Philly-based micro-influencers and content creators, prioritizing women of color already in Topicals' Spottie Hottie ambassador network, attend Sixers games throughout the season. One brief: post your game-night skincare routine. No script. Real women wearing Faded patches in the stands and swiping peel pads at halftime. The hashtag: #FadedInPhilly. By game 10, it's what you associate with being a woman at a Sixers game.

the goods

The Product Line

the new era

The Narrative

The word "faded" carries two meanings in this campaign.

In Topicals' world, faded means dark spots gone. Discoloration cleared. Skin renewed.

In Philadelphia's world right now, faded is the old era. The almost-runs. The seasons that didn't deliver. LeBron choosing the 76ers is the city's fresh start. New roster. New expectations. New energy.

Faded in Philly sits at the intersection: new skin, new era. The campaign doesn't need LeBron's face on a billboard. It rides the cultural wave his arrival created. Every woman who walks into Wells Fargo Center this season already feels the shift. Topicals just gives her the product to match.

the gallery

Campaign Imagery

All campaign imagery is AI-generated for concept visualization purposes.