Forget about retirement parties. Crayola is holding a year-long “unretirement” party for eight of its crayon colors.

On March 21, International Colour Day, Crayola launched “The Most Colorful Reunion Ever” campaign, centered around the release of a limited-edition eight-crayon pack consisting of colors that had previously been retired. “We receive fan requests for bringing back retired colors all the time,” says Crayola Chief Marketing Officer Victoria Lozano. “We keep track of what colors consumers are asking for.” The limited-edition colors are also available as colored pencils and markers as well as in special-edition 32-color and 64-color crayon packs and activity kits.

The celebration began in New York City’s Union Square with a free event where each of the unretired crayons—people in Crayola costumes—demonstrated what they’d been up to since their last appearance in store shelves. Magic Mint, for instance, hosted face painting in a safari-inspired space to represent its African vacation.

While the activities and crafts were tailored primarily for kids, elements such as Lemon Yellow’s dance floor with 360-degree video capture for social sharing were designed to appeal to adults as well. “For kids, the focus is on sparking creativity and putting their imagination into action,” Lozano says of the campaign. “For adults, it’s much more leaning into nostalgia and childhood memories.”

The dual audience of kids and grown-ups is evident in Crayola’s choice of partners for the campaign. Cosmetics storage case brand Caboodles, apparel maker Lee and water-bottle brand S’well are among those that will be releasing special collections featuring the eight reinstated colors.

“We look for brands that share similar goals,” Lozano says. “The brands themselves and the programs need to focus on creativity and colors. We’re leaning into the use of this color palette, nostalgia and products that you wouldn’t expect from Crayola.” That the flagship product of the campaign is an eight-count box itself nods to nostalgia as well as to Crayola’s history, as an eight-pack of crayons was among its first products.

Social-First Marketing

Over the coming months, Crayola will be hosting additional events at its six stores and activity centers. It was also planning an event to tie in with National Dandelion Day on April 5, as Dandelion is the most popular color in the limited-edition collection. And over the summer, for first time in 25 years, according to Lozano, it’s launching a “global color vote.”

The voting on consumers’ favorite colors will be held through social media. In fact, Crayola is promoting the entire campaign almost exclusively via earned and social media, including its owned Instagram (558,000 followers) and Facebook (3.8 million followers) feeds. “We think that color is such a personal and engaging thing, it’s more genuine to have it done through social and our media,” Lozano explains. “Color is very emotive; every time Crayola mentions color on social it sparks a conversation.” The company will use impressions, number of shares and other social metrics to gauge the campaign’s effectiveness.

Supporting Creativity

“The Most Colorful Reunion Ever” activation ties into Crayola’s Campaign for Creativity, an advocacy program the brand launched last year, which “explains to parents what creativity is and how to incorporate it into everyday routines,” Lozano says. “We’re adding to the conversation that color is incredibly important to that creative.”

A survey Crayola conducted with the Ad Council Research Institute reinforces this idea. Roughly 90% of the parents surveyed said that color has a significant impact on creativity and is vital to their children’s development—and 96% said they encourage their kids to use color to bring their imagination to life.

To support such encouragement, Crayola is offering free downloadable activity sheets and crafts suggestions on its website and social feeds. Many of those crafts are designed for adults to engage in as well. “All we want to do is help create those creative moments with their kids in a fun and engaging way,” Lozano says. “We’re bringing in excitement and narrative around color. It connects us to our memories and moments in life and inspires us to create new experiences.”