Five weeks before Latvia’s biggest youth festival, Rimi pivoted from a planned brand activation to a crisis response, mobilizing resources to address water shortage and protect participant health.
Rimi entered the Latvian Youth Song and Dance Festival as a lead sponsor, planning a classic brand activation. But five weeks before the event, everything changed. Organizers faced a critical issue as no national supplier could deliver the water needed for 40,000 children dancing and singing in the summer heat. The festival risked collapsing under the weight of a public health emergency, as with past editions marked by cases of dehydration and fainting, the threat was real. Rimi stepped in not with marketing fluff but with full operational force, reallocating resources, activating logistics teams, and committing to solve the crisis. The mission expanded from visibility to impact: ensure hydration, safeguard children’s wellbeing, and turn a logistics emergency into a national health education campaign. Branded refillable bottles, water stations, and on-site workshops turned passive sponsorship into a values-led response and Rimi into a key actor in festival continuity.
A sudden water supply crisis shortly before the Youth Song and Dance Festival required a complete overhaul of Rimi’s sponsorship strategy. Rimi shifted from a planned brand presence to addressing an urgent logistical and public health need. To make this meaningful, a hydration campaign was launched using creative tools and cultural relevance. Within 24 hours, the “Udens deja” (Water Dance) and an original song were produced in collaboration with a music studio and PR agency. Delivered via dance groups, media, influencers, and volunteers, the campaign shared a health message through emotionally resonant content. Children were encouraged to personalise bottles to promote reuse, supported by water stations and a deposit system. A TikTok filter, dance contest, and unified messaging amplified engagement. This became not just a logistics solution, but a public health activation using design thinking, rapid prototyping, and cultural insight to drive awareness and education.
