Cadbury and VCCP are launching their new campaign ‘#ForTheLoveOfChocolate, which rallies the nation to support high-street chocolate shops during this difficult time for the high-street.
The new ad turns the famous ‘Mum’s Birthday’ Tv commercial into an awareness drive for struggling chocolate shops.
The integrated campaign will span TV, YouTube, OOH with an activation on Cadbury Gifts Direct and shop activation in Birmingham.
The past year has been incredibly challenging for the Great British High Street, especially for independent chocolatiers up and down the country, with shops having to close their doors with little warning, and some for good. Research from business insurance firm Simply Business have revealed that small businesses in the UK have lost nearly £69 Billion in sales alone – while two fifths of shops have closed or are in threat of permanently closing.
Launching today, #ForTheLoveOfChocolate from VCCP will rally the nation to support high street chocolate shops. At a time when the country eases out of lockdown and essential shops reopen, the latest campaign from Cadbury encourages consumers to forego buying a bar of Cadbury Dairy Milk, instead opting for chocolate from an independent high street chocolate shop.
Cadbury started out as a small, independent chocolate shop on Birmingham’s Bull Street in 1824. Coming from independent roots, the enforced closures around the UK of independent competitors inspired the team at Cadbury to help other small chocolate shops to stay open. At the heart of the campaign is a partnership with six independent high street chocolate shops across the country including Hill Street in Essex; Chouchoute in Birmingham; Choc on Choc in Bath; Melange in London; Cocoa Amore in Leicester and Cocoa Cabana in Manchester.
Chouchoute opened its own chocolatier in 2002, just a stone’s throw from the original Cadbury store in Birmingham. After a hugely challenging year for small businesses everywhere, Chouchoute, though managing to still exist online, sadly was forced to close its shop doors after 18 years of trading.
The integrated campaign will play out across TV, YouTube, OOH with an activation on Cadbury Gifts Direct as well as a shop activation in Birmingham. PR will be supported by Golin, and media planning and execution by Carat.
To raise awareness and help spread the word about struggling chocolatiers, Cadbury will re-work its iconic TVC ‘Mum’s Birthday’, and will feature Chouchoute’s branding instead of Cadbury. Running for two weeks, The campaign will include a special call to action asking the public to help high street chocolate shops during this tough time.
To help the independent chocolate shops get back on their feet, Cadbury’s ecommerce site, Cadbury Gifts Direct, will push consumers to their six independent chocolate partners by featuring them on the site as well as encouraging people to try their chocolate for free on 4th May at 12pm. Cadbury will also donate almost half a million pounds of OOH and DOOH advertising space outdoors near each independent shop location,as well as digital spend to help drive traffic and awareness.
Colin O’Toole, Associate Director of Marketing for Cadbury UK and Ireland at Mondelez, said: “We are proud to be supporting local chocolatiers across the UK. As a nation, we’ve always been lucky to have a thriving chocolate scene, full of variety and creativity; and at Cadbury, we of course understand what it’s like to start out as a small independent chocolate shop. So, we wanted to take the opportunity to support our fellow chocolatiers and ask the nation to do the same. After all, it’s all for the love of chocolate.”
Jonny Parker, Executive Creative Director at VCCP, added: “As, fingers crossed, some sort of normality is just around the corner, we wanted to do our bit to get the Great British High Street back on its feet. It felt a bit wrong but then very very right that Cadbury supported independent chocolate shops, all for the love of chocolate.”
As part of the campaign a shop activation will run in a shop just off Bull Street, and will see Cadbury Dairy Milk bars wrapped with a Chouchoute branded sleeve with the campaign’s mission printed on the back of the wrapper to get everyone involved in generously helping their independent competitors until they’re back on their feet.
For further information on the campaign, visit https://www.cadburygiftsdirect.co.uk/fortheloveofchocolate.