Mark Maidment was speaking with Josh Allen last season during a promotional shoot for New Era Cap when the Buffalo Bills quarterback said he鈥檇 like a job with the company.
The senior vice president of brand at New Era wasn鈥檛 sure if Allen was kidding around. Plus, Maidment knew that Allen already had a pretty important job he鈥檚 quite good at: leading an NFL team.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen greets fans on Wednesday at training camp in Pittsford. Buffalo-based New Era has received a positive reaction to a humorous commercial that introduces Allen in his new role as director of Billustration.
But he quickly found out Allen wasn鈥檛 joking and realized what a huge opportunity this would be for the Buffalo-based hat and apparel maker and lifestyle company to expand its partnership with someone New Era considers a 鈥渉ometown hero.鈥
New Era recently announced Allen鈥檚 investment stake in the company, as well as his position as director of Billustration. And the company released a humorous commercial that鈥檚 received a huge reaction to introduce Allen in his new role.
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Allen has partnered with New Era since his rookie year in 2018 and shoots ad campaigns every year with the company. But this elevates his role, making him more than just a company spokesperson.
It鈥檚 also a chance to show off Allen鈥檚 personality, creativity and humor, while capitalizing on his popularity as the league鈥檚 Most Valuable Player and one of its most sought-after pitchmen for a variety of influential brands.
鈥淭hat was the trigger for the conversation about 鈥榳hat if Josh isn鈥檛 just an ambassador, or friend of the brand, but he鈥檚 actually got a job,鈥 so we went back and forth with him and that鈥檚 where this was born,鈥 said Maidment, who was recruited from London to join New Era about a decade ago.
鈥淲e wanted to come up with something original and we wanted to have fun with it,鈥 he added. 鈥淛osh fits perfectly for what we鈥檇 look for from someone 鈥 he鈥檚 a hometown hero, authentic and incredibly philanthropic and caring. Everything you see is exactly who he is.鈥
New Era elicited the help of another Buffalo-based company, advertising firm The Martin Group, to put together the lighthearted two-minute film that would formalize the relationship with Allen. They came up with a concept that allowed Allen to be himself and add his own humor, while creating a moment they knew fans would enjoy.
Nearly 30% of what Allen said in the commercial was ad-libbed or improvised. Allen knows what is and isn鈥檛 funny and his timing is impeccable, Maidment said.
Michael Tsanis, senior vice president of creative at The Martin Group, said Allen took to what they had planned right away and there was great energy on set.
鈥淗e understood what every scene鈥檚 intention was meant to do and just kind of naturally rolled with it,鈥 Tsanis said. 鈥淲e had a bunch of scripted things we wanted him to say and he kind of perused it, read our lines and then kind of riffed on them. A lot of the stuff he was coming up with was just really great stuff.鈥
As part of the campaign, Allen will wear nine different 9FORTY 鈥淏illustration鈥 team caps that have been specially customized by Oishei Children鈥檚 Hospital patients. He will wear the caps as he walks through the tunnel at each Bills home game.
Afterward, the caps will be auctioned off to the public, so there鈥檚 a philanthropic aspect to the partnership. Proceeds will go to the Patricia Allen Fund, which was established in memory of Allen鈥檚 grandmother and benefits the critical care teams at the hospital with donations directly used for the care of Western New York鈥檚 children and families.
Allen is also in a new commercial for New Era announcing the launch of the 2025 NFL Sidelines Collection with caps designed for the harshest of weather conditions. This spot is more specifically about sports and full of emotion.
鈥淭o see Josh within a six-week period in such different lights from the same brand, I think is really interesting and shows how versatile and important he is and the way he can trigger emotion on different levels,鈥 Maidment said.
This is not a typical relationship between athlete and brand. New Era works with many athletes who have character and are authentic, but Allen is certainly unique. It led Allen to become the company鈥檚 first ever ambassador to receive an undisclosed equity stake in the headwear and lifestyle brand.
Being from the city where the brand is headquartered makes for an even more magic combination that鈥檚 鈥渂eyond perfect,鈥 Maidment said.
鈥淣ew Era has been here for 105 years, and we want to grow as a brand and have what we call true household recognition as a brand, and he鈥檚 such a household name. It reflects positively on the people who work at New Era and the things that we want to do,鈥 Maidment said. 鈥淛osh embraces the moment. You can鈥檛 do this with every ambassador athlete you work with.鈥
Allen was also able to nail things quickly, so it didn鈥檛 require many takes to get the spot done inside New Era in Buffalo. That was especially helpful because, while the shoot lasted all day, Allen was only on-site for two hours.
鈥淭he comedy bit, you don鈥檛 get a lot of chances to do it,鈥 said Amy Pecoraro, senior vice president for creative operations at The Martin Group. 鈥淪ometimes it can be hokey or cheesy and we didn鈥檛 want it to come across that way. But I thought it turned out great and was super fun to shoot.鈥
Many fans would agree. The response and engagement have been overwhelming with New Era getting well over a billion impressions for the spot.
After 32 years in the industry, Maidment, who was in the film with Allen, said this was the campaign where he received the most feedback.
鈥淚 think there鈥檚 so much to be said, for, in the world today, anything that makes you smile,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 did have someone text me to say that they watched it six times in a row and it kept making them laugh.鈥
It鈥檚 certainly helped that Allen has been there and done that. He鈥檚 gotten used to shooting commercials with some of the biggest brands in the world, including Gatorade, Pepsi, Paramount, Gillette, Frito-Lay and Verizon. And Allen loves creating content, Maidment said.
There will also be mini film extensions of certain parts of the shoot and updates about how Allen is coming along in his new role with New Era to be released over the coming months.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a long-term campaign to this that people can lock into and look forward to, just like they would an NFL season,鈥 Maidment said.
New Era also recently launched the 2025 NFL Sidelines Collection with Allen, introducing the company鈥檚 newly designed caps built 鈥渇or all weather, not fair weather.鈥 The commercial showcases the durability of individual caps designed to withstand the elements and shows Allen competing in the harshest of weather.
鈥淚 was ready to dive into this campaign and bring this collection to life, capturing what players and fans experience on game day,鈥 Allen said in a statement. 鈥淎dapting to weather conditions on the field is critical for performance, and it鈥檚 just as important that our gear adapts with us.鈥
