CASE 001: HOMETOWN BLUES (pt. 1)

The Formation

Before there were live rosters in video games, a kid in the city was cutting the sports section out of the Sunday paper to track every trade in the league by hand. Not because anyone asked him to, but because one franchise had gotten into his nervous system the way only childhood brands can. He traced their logo until he could draw it without looking. He made his own merch. He knew the roster the way other kids knew lyrics. The team hadn't done anything to earn this yet…besides captivate his father. That's the point. Brand loyalty at its most durable forms before the brand has had any chance to disappoint you, which means by the time they do, the damage is already structural.