My Experience Working with a New York Icon

Jul 27 2012

@ 6:17 pm

Here at Collective Bias we work with a wide range of unique brands and retailers, one of them being Duane Reade. For those who aren’t familiar with Duane Reade just take a trip to NYC and you will find them tucked away on almost every street corner. Duane Reade has come to be the most recognized drugstore with over 250 locations in the metropolitan New York area and the go-to place for New Yorkers since 1960.

As the project manager, I’ve helped Duane Reade build a strong team of brand advocates that we label the Duane Reade VIP’s. This team is made up of bloggers that are passionate about health, beauty, fashion, food, etc., and of course Duane Reade.

Left to right” Calvin Peters (DR), Christine Tsang, Blake Mandleberg, Yoli Ouiya, Carmelo Anthony, Indy Smith, Melissa Chapman, Jay Berg (CB).

Recently, our Duane Reade VIP bloggers had the opportunity to shadow Carmelo Anthony, small forward for the New York Knicks, as he toured five Duane Reade locations throughout Manhattan on his first day on the job as EVP of Innovation at Powercoco, a low-calorie, hydrating sports drink made from coconut water and is touted as, “The Next Generation Sports Drink.” Not only is it great tasting, but it contains only 5 grams of sugar and 25 calories.

Photo courtesy of Christine Tsang

The day started off at the 100 Broadway location and ended with a bang at 8th Ave. and 34th St. (see locations visited below) As the locations progressed so did the fans. Carmelo fans lined the streets at each location to get their moment with the Knicks player who happily obliged to take pictures and sign autographs.

1. 100 Broadway/Pine St
2. 40 Wall St/Pine St
3. 200 Water St./Fulton
4. 52 14th St/Broadway
5. 460 8th Ave/34th St

This was such an exciting opportunity for our Social Fabric® members to interact with not only a great brand, but also get the opportunity to meet a professional NBA star and local celebrity.