October 29, 2026 · How we work · 3 min read
Aventura to Santa Monica.
Store openings from Aventura to Santa Monica: what we learned
Two years of store launches and activations for JD Sports, including the rebrand from Finish Line to JD Sports. What a good opening day needs.
On Saturday 17 June 2023, JD Sports opened its doors in Aventura, Florida, and we were there to film it. In November 2024, JD opened on Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, and we were there too. In between came two years of store launches and activations for JD Sports, including the rebrand from Finish Line to JD Sports.
Every door gets a launch
A store opening is a launch with a fixed address. The date is set, the line forms once and the city only gets one first day. We treat each one the way we treat a product launch: a plan, a run of show and films ready for JD's channels. A store that opens like a launch has films and photos that keep working after opening day, for the store, the city and the brand.
The run of show
JD's run of show for Aventura put the capture team on site at 9:00 AM and the athlete arrival at 11:00 AM. Two lines on a sheet, and they shape the whole day. Everything we shoot is planned around the peak, and around the hours that lead up to it. Here is what we plan for on every opening day.
- The store before the doors open
- The line as it builds outside
- The peak: an arrival, a ribbon or the first customer through the door
- The city walking in
- Vertical films sized for JD's channels
From the Bronx to Santa Monica
The doors ran coast to coast: The Hub and Bay Plaza in the Bronx, 125th Street in Harlem, State Street in Chicago, Brea and Culver City in California, Chestnut Street in Philadelphia, Hylan Blvd on Staten Island and Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. Each one had its own street, its own crowd and its own reason to show up.
Different cities, one standard. A shopper in Chicago and a shopper on Staten Island should see the same brand on opening day, shot with the same care.
Those films add up. 354 delivered since 2023 is a library, not a one off: new stores, new cities and new moments for JD to show.
In JD Sports' words
“Each project has been completed on time and with a level of creativity that I rarely see in my industry.”
Your opening day checklist
Use it for one store or a whole run of them.
- Get the run of show early. It is your shot list.
- Plan the hours before the doors open, not just the peak.
- Know the one moment the day builds to, and be in position for it.
- Cut vertical films for your channels while the opening is still news.
- Keep one standard in every city, so the latest door looks as good as the first.
Opening a store, or a run of them? Book a call. Tell us the dates and the cities, and we will plan each opening day with you.
