It’s fair to say spirits’ advertising has come a long way since the days when all you had to do was employ a Frenchman to wax lyrical and smooth talk to a “beautiful and captivated” British woman (Cointreau from the 1970s anyone?) – and good job, too.
Of course, with TV advertising now outlawed, the activity has to work much harder and also appeal to a much younger and, dare we say, more discerning audience. After all, there are a lorra, lorra booze brands out there.
Enter a new campaign from cognac brand Courvoisier, timed to coincide with next weekend’s Father’s Day. However, it doesn’t just big up the dads – because naturally not everyone has a relationship with theirs – instead, it focuses on the “father figures” who help shape us; the mentors, the teachers, and the role models… sorry Dad.
Devised by Calling, the campaign taps up a group of creative peeps to tell their personal stories of pivotal role models in a series of films, running on VOD, social and digital, backed by OOH.
First up is Mercury and Brit award winning artists Ezra Collective, who celebrate jazz icon Gary Crosby – the man who brought the band together and guided them on the path to stardom.
Meanwhile, fashion designer Bianca Saunders is reunited with her teacher Andrew Ibi, who gave her the confidence as a black woman to enter the world of menswear.
And, finally, ceramics artist Giuseppe Parrinello lauds his father figure from his local community, Adalberto Lonardi, who helped him find his way within the art world.
As the official blurb states: “Teachers, mentors, family and community. Inspirational father figures come in all shapes and ages. On the day we celebrate our biological dads, let’s raise a glass to our father figures too.”
Calling founder and ECD Josh Tenser said: “Booze brands have a tendency to lean on tropes and clichés. True to our mission we saw an opportunity to create some progress around a very traditional trading moment and create something cultural, emotional and inclusive.
“These stories open the lens and allow us to celebrate even more of the great men in our lives – in a joyful and positive way. There’s a deep truth that it often takes someone outside of our immediate family to see the nascent creative sparks in us and fan them into flames.
“We’re extremely proud to be helping Courvoisier re-enter the cultural landscape in the UK in a way that’s both true to the brand and also primed to reach modern audiences.”
So, what is the consensus around the Decision Marketing office?
Well, naturally, we all have our father figures…some are our actual dads; others just men in our lives who have inspire us along the way – if you are lucky you might have both.
We do quite like these films, they are nicely shot, well scripted and inspirational. It’s just a bit of a shame they couldn’t include any actual dads – but hey that’s purpose-driven advertising for you.
Decision Marketing Adometer: A “bottoms up” 8 out of 10
