On’s influencer-fueled stride: how the Swiss performance brand is scaling in Europe through smart social strategy

On has leapt up Kolsquare’s Europe’s fashion rankings on Instagram and TikTok. Behind the rise is a smart influencer strategy built on product launches, cultural collaborations, and sporting moments that keep the brand in the spotlight.

‍

Swiss performance brand On is no longer just the runner’s best-kept secret. Known for its lightweight cushioning and strong athlete endorsements, On has been steadily building its reputation across Europe — not just on the track but in culture, fashion, and social feeds.

The brand’s influencer marketing strategy is beginning to show measurable returns. On climbed 29 places to reach #82 on TikTok and 27 places to #71 on Instagram in Kolsquare’s latest European Fashion top 100 rankings. This upward mobility reflects a shift in how On is engaging creators, sequencing campaigns, and leveraging cultural moments to scale visibility across the continent.

At the heart of this growth is what can be called On’s three-act playbook: product innovations that spark curiosity among athletes and reviewers, fashion or cultural crossovers that broaden the brand’s appeal, and sports pinnacle events that bring authority and mass awareness. This rhythm has underpinned On’s influencer strategy over the last year and created a repeatable model for sustained growth.

In this article, we dissect On’s European influencer marketing strategy with the help of Kolsquare’s Key Metrics functionality. The analysis takes into account all @on and @onrunning mentions on Instagram and TikTok by KOLs with +30% audience reach in nine European markets (FR, DE, IT, ES, GB, BE, NL, DK, SE), comparing the periods January to June 2024 with January to June 2025.

@alicelimperatrice Omggg j’aime trop 😍 et vous? Réf @On ♬ son original - Alice L’impératrice 🍒

Key takeaways

Instagram is becoming more efficient – fewer posts, more EMV per view, anchored around well-timed product drops and sports moments.
TikTok is maturing into a growth engine – while still smaller in absolute terms, its EMV efficiency rose sharply during cultural hooks like fashion capsules and tennis tournaments.
Partnerships and events deliver tent-pole spikes – from the Cloudsurfer 2 road running shoe launch to the Loewe × On collaboration, and Roland-Garros with Iga Świątek, On stacked reasons-to-post in H1 2025.
Creator retention is improving – repeat collaborations with tech reviewers, stylists, and athlete storytellers suggest a more sustainable community of advocates.

Instagram: less content, more impact

Instagram remains On’s strongest stage in Europe, and what stands out in 2025 is how much the brand is achieving with less. EMV efficiency has grown year over year, showing that fewer, better-timed bursts can outperform constant content.

These bursts were clustered around the three-act playbook: the February release of the Cloudsurfer 2, the fashion crossover with Loewe in May, and the Roland-Garros spotlight on Iga Świątek in early summer.

The brand leaned into formats that feel both premium and shareable, with polished Reels and curated carousels bringing higher engagement than the previous year. This approach positions Instagram as On’s “bank” for earned media value — consolidating attention after awareness has been sparked elsewhere, and proving that careful timing and creative craft can outweigh sheer output.

Voir cette publication sur Instagram

Une publication partagée par Stefano Belotti (@stefanobelottiii)

TikTok: where momentum meets culture

If Instagram is where On saves its impact, TikTok has become the spark that sets things in motion. What was once a modest presence has transformed into a more deliberate use of the platform in 2025. Efficiency jumped during the Loewe collaboration, when lifestyle and fashion creators styled the capsule in ways that felt instinctively TikTok-native.

Instead of sporadic product mentions, creators experimented with short-form storytelling — hands-on shoe tests, styling transitions, and courtside snippets during tennis season. These moments resonated with younger audiences in France, Germany, and Italy, who increasingly expect authenticity over polish. TikTok may still be smaller in absolute value than Instagram, but it has become a credible growth lever, especially when tied to cultural tent-poles.

Partnerships and events: turning moments into movements

On’s rise in 2025 was anything but accidental. The brand carefully stacked cultural moments to keep creators and audiences engaged throughout the first half of the year. February saw the launch of the Cloudsurfer 2, which generated waves of reviews and performance-led storytelling. The shoe was reviewed positively by outlets such as GQ, coverage which fed directly into influencer content across markets like the UK and France.

In May, the Loewe × On capsule gave the brand a completely different kind of visibility. Loewe’s reputation for avant-garde design and cultural relevance introduced On to new audiences — stylists, editors, and lifestyle creators who were able to emphasise the concept of fashionable running gear for the brand. This collaboration positioned On at the intersection of performance and high fashion, showing that the brand can carry credibility in both worlds.

A few weeks later, Polish tennis star Iga Świątek brought On into one of Europe’s biggest sporting stages at the Roland Garros Grand Slam. As world number one, Świątek embodies excellence on the court and resonates deeply with European fans, particularly in France, Poland, and Germany. Her match highlights, tunnel looks, and tournament presence extended On’s reach far beyond traditional running communities.

Between these spikes, On’s OAC Europe athletes sustained visibility with training content and behind-the-scenes updates, ensuring that the brand never disappeared from conversation. Together, these cultural touchpoints created a narrative rhythm few competitors could match.

Creator community: from one-offs to long-term allies

The way On works with creators has also matured. On Instagram, macro and micro influencers drove most of the value, while mega-athletes like Iga Świątek anchored the biggest moments. Nano creators stepped in during the Loewe Capsule Collection collaboration to showcase styling content that felt more grassroots and relatable.

TikTok told a different story, with micro and nano profiles dominating week to week and bringing authenticity at scale. Macro voices were used more selectively, tied to high-visibility launches rather than everyday storytelling. Importantly, more creators are coming back for a second or third collaboration compared to 2024. This signals that On is moving away from one-off partnerships and towards a genuine community of advocates.

For a brand intent on bridging performance sport and lifestyle culture, this evolving network of creators is both a safeguard and a growth engine. It means the stories that audiences hear are not just campaigns — they are relationships unfolding over time.

Voir cette publication sur Instagram

Une publication partagée par Joana (@joanahanna)

What’s next: scaling the playbook without losing authenticity

On’s YoY leap in Europe shows a brand learning to balance credibility and cultural relevance with remarkable precision. The influencer strategy is no longer siloed; it flows like a sequence. Product innovations spark curiosity, fashion collaborations broaden reach, and sporting events reinforce authority.

As marathon season approaches in the autumn, On has the chance to extend this playbook with running stories and seasonal capsules, while deepening its investment in long-term creator relationships. TikTok will remain the platform where trends catch fire, while Instagram will continue to be the place where value is consolidated.

On is striding ahead — efficient on Instagram, creative on TikTok, and increasingly visible in both sport and style. The challenge now is to scale this playbook while keeping the authenticity that made the Swiss brand so compelling in the first place.

About Kolsquare

Kolsquare is Europe’s leading Influencer Marketing platform, offering a data-driven solution that empowers brands to scale their KOL (Key Opinion Leader) marketing strategies through authentic partnerships with top creators.

Kolsquare’s advanced technology helps marketing professionals seamlessly identify the best content creators by filtering their content and audience, while also enabling them to build, manage, and optimize campaigns from start to finish. This includes measuring results and benchmarking performance against competitors.

With a thriving global community of influencer marketing experts, Kolsquare serves hundreds of customers—including Coca-Cola, Netflix, Sony Music, Publicis, Sézane, Sephora, Lush, and Hermès—by leveraging the latest Big Data, AI, and Machine Learning technologies. Our platform taps into an extensive network of KOLs with more than 5,000 followers across 180 countries on Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and Snapchat.

As a Certified B Corporation, Kolsquare leads the way in promoting Responsible Influence, championing transparency, ethical practices, and meaningful collaborations that inspire positive change.

Since October 2024, Kolsquare has become part of the Team.Blue group, one of the largest private tech companies in Europe, and a leading digital enabler for businesses and entrepreneurs across Europe. Team.Blue brings together over 60 successful brands in web hosting, domains, e-commerce, online compliance, lead generation, application solutions, and social media.