Many New Yorkers will tell you that Marathon Sunday is their favorite day of the year. Jubilation. Exasperation. Triumph. It’s all on display at the NYC Marathon. After years of inspired watching from a Brooklyn sidewalk, I finally ran the damn thing myself in 2025 — the year I also art directed the sponsorship campaign for Citizens. You could say it was my quintessential NYC moment.
The campaign build encompassed the design and development of cohesive assets across social, digital, print, OOH, email, in-branch/on-site, apparel and accessories. We maintained a simple, Citizens green aesthetic and featured racing stripes as an evolution of the brand’s “journey lines,” indicating the bank’s enduring presence throughout life’s journey. Where it made sense, we also made use of a “stop-motion/gif” effect to hype the human emotion and drama expected on race day.
My Role: AD/Designer
Taxi Toppers
Social
OOH - Subway Liveboards
OOH - Transit Shelters & Newsstands
In-Branch Signage (NYC)
Email/NYRR Newsletter Inclusions
Landing Pages
I partnered with an external agency (Miller Zell) and advised on the design of citizensnycmoments.com, where fans could send well wishes to the runners. I also worked with our in-house web devs on the imagery for citizensbank.com/runNYC (the official marathon sponsorship page on the Citizens website).
Pre-Race Expo Pop-up (Javits Center Onsite)
We partnered with Miller Zell to design an immersive Citizens NYC Moments experience at the pre-race expo held at Javits Center. It featured digital signage and video assets from the rest of the campaign, as well as a giant “NYC” made of stacked Citizens credit cards and a digital ticker displaying messages of support from attendees and fans.
Taxi Wraps
We offered runners a free taxi ride from the Pre-Race Expo at the Javits Center, so they could save their energy for race day. As the designer of the signage (physical/digital) and the taxi wraps, it was a thrill to see my designs in real life and on the road. As a runner, the free ride was much appreciated.
Bus Wraps
Double-decker busses wrapped in Citizens green and featuring our campaign’s racing stripes were strategically parked at the start line and at the Citizens Cheer Zone located at Mile 12 along the marathon route. You couldn’t miss them.
Team Citizens Apparel and Accessories
I designed the official Team Citizens singlet, bib clips and volunteer long-sleeve t-shirt featuring our campaign racing stripes.
Finished.
Having crossed the figurative and literal finish line, I’d say I’ve certainly earned my racing stripes. Also a beer.
Credits
CDs: Tony Gould, Matt Rockett & Ion Sokhos
AD/Designer: Andrew Ralston SmithCW: Val Mass
Video Editor: Katie Covino
Photography/Retouching: Alex Champoli
Video Editor: Andrew Ralston Smith
