Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks 2023

As the Creative Director for the 2023 Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks campaign, my role was to conceptualize and execute a branding system that would captivate audiences nationwide. Again. See, my team and I had just completed a top to bottom Fireworks rebrand. And - on top of branding, advertising, product, and event collateral - “let’s go for the broadcast creative this year”, which had never been done. Oh, and we had about a month, from start to finish.

Now what? Cut to me listening to George Michael’s “Freedom” on an endless loop for inspiration. (Idk why, just felt right. I’m listening to it right now.)

Enter Jon Contino, fearless (and friendly - v important) collaborator and one of my design idols, who I’d partnered with for the last Fireworks rebrand. Our goals? It had to look brand new. Let’s start over from scratch, ensuring the Fireworks could live within the new Macy’s Branded Entertainment campaigns, which had grown up quite a bit. They were elevated, stronger, and dare I say chic.

We’ll use actual photographs of the Fireworks this time, which was rare for these campaigns - the fireworks themselves are dazzling as is, and already doing the heavy lifting (plus, that’d ensure that the campaign would look great when paired with video). Using photos would allow us to stay adaptable as talent was announced too. The type? Completely custom - we’ve got Contino on board after all. Strong, modern, trustworthy, distinct. Let’s look to the world of sports for inspiration. Nike, Adidas, two major brand at Macy’s hitting close to home. How do they make athleticism look so damn fashionable, and how could this campaign look fashionable too? As for patriotism? Back to sports. What if we were crafting work for America’s biggest fans, foam fingers and all?

What follows is that campaign, and damn am I proud. “Go Team!” - something I say quite often - has never been more fitting.