Young cucumber squad
Food Chirat was on the hunt for the "Super Cucumber." *Werbewoche* reported on it. The search turned into a crisp success story.
Food Chirat was looking for the super cucumber. Werbewoche reported on it. Frank Hauerken likes old brands and traditions. Because there is love and a lot of work behind them. When he first encountered the Chirat brand, the Foods Director of Unilever Switzerland spontaneously thought of it as a "slumbering diamond." He pays tribute to the work of generations who have invested a lot of heart and soul in building up the brand. Chirat has been around since 1854. "It is my commitment to bring out the best in the brand," says Hauerken. Those aren't empty words. When a consumer survey showed that Chirat was being forgotten by younger consumers, Hauerken wanted to do something about it. He didn't want to write off the generation of 18- to 24-year-olds, and he didn't want to simply accept the brand's loss of image. The Unilever man was self-critical: "It was a mistake not to actively promote the brand for years." Even the strongest brand gets lost in nirvana if you don't nurture it. The German wanted to get Chirat back on track. Which was a difficult decision: Unilever has to nurture many big international brands. "But you only have one wallet," says the man in charge. Because of the exceptional brand history, his strategists and he agreed that a larger campaign would be worthwhile.
Chirat is looking for the super cucumberUnilever gave the advertising agency JWT+H+F the task of creating a TV campaign. Unilever wanted to build on the successful campaigns from the eighties. The Chirat cartoons and the Chirat melody are classics in Swiss advertising history. "A cultural asset," says Creative Director Remy Fabrikant of JWT+H+F.
The Zurich agency designed commercials. In a similar style to the old ones, only more colorful, more modern, with the same jingle and the famous "Knacki" at the end. The creatives from JWT+H+F staged the cucumbers in a casting show ("Chirat sucht die Super-Gurke" Werbewoche 20. 9. 2006). The spots parody the casting show boom. The motto: "Only the crunchiest make it into the jar." The spots accompanied the casting formats of 3+ and Swiss television.
In addition to funny commercials, Unilever presented the pickle jars in a new dress. The British-Dutch company launched a new packaging design. Frank Hauerken: "The design was dusty. We wanted to clean up the shelf." Unilever approached the task cautiously. The boss is not a fan of the wrench methodology. Nestlé had shown how not to do it with Cailler. The PET packaging flopped with consumers.
Hauerken wanted to modify only what was necessary and stick to the pattern recognition. Apart from the "old-fashioned pictures", only little was changed.
Six months later, Frank Hauerken draws a positive balance. He has realized many campaigns in his career: "Rarely have I seen such clear figures." He is impressed by the result, having initially thought it impossible to make a difference in the stagnating market.
Ultimately, the campaign achieved what advertisers dream of. It had a significant effect on sales figures. Overall, Unilever achieved a 6.5 percent increase in volume, according to market research firm AC Nielsen. Despite all the factors and trends working against the pumpkin vegetable, Unilever was able to sell more thanks to the campaign, even though Chirat is more expensive than the competition and the battle for consumers is predominantly fought on price. Unilever had to learn this painfully at the beginning of the campaign. A competitor launched a volume print campaign at the same time as the commercials were broadcast, triggering a stock buy. As a result, Chirat sold 32 percent less. This action initially distorted the effect of the TV campaign. Its full effect was seen in the following months. Thanks to the commercials, Unilever was able to significantly increase sales figures, and the crunchy cucumber is once again at the top of the list among young consumers.
Hauerken attributes the success of the campaign to the good foundation of the product. Rarely has he managed a brand with such robust figures. In addition, strategy and creation were optimally coordinated.
Hauerken remains critical, however, despite the success. It was clear to him that he had bought in "awareness" with the campaign. At the same time, however, he makes it clear that big brands need continuous communication. In the market environment of canned vinegar anyway. This is not a classic market for innovations, and there is little market potential. It is important to maintain the position and to keep reminding consumers that Chirat is one of the crunchiest.
Which they really are. Unilever produces directly next to the cucumber plantations in Turkey. Which doesn't make them Swiss cucumbers per se. "But the Chirat brand is genuinely Swiss," adds Frank Hauerken.
Christian Lüscher
Chirat is looking for the super cucumberUnilever gave the advertising agency JWT+H+F the task of creating a TV campaign. Unilever wanted to build on the successful campaigns from the eighties. The Chirat cartoons and the Chirat melody are classics in Swiss advertising history. "A cultural asset," says Creative Director Remy Fabrikant of JWT+H+F.
The Zurich agency designed commercials. In a similar style to the old ones, only more colorful, more modern, with the same jingle and the famous "Knacki" at the end. The creatives from JWT+H+F staged the cucumbers in a casting show ("Chirat sucht die Super-Gurke" Werbewoche 20. 9. 2006). The spots parody the casting show boom. The motto: "Only the crunchiest make it into the jar." The spots accompanied the casting formats of 3+ and Swiss television.
In addition to funny commercials, Unilever presented the pickle jars in a new dress. The British-Dutch company launched a new packaging design. Frank Hauerken: "The design was dusty. We wanted to clean up the shelf." Unilever approached the task cautiously. The boss is not a fan of the wrench methodology. Nestlé had shown how not to do it with Cailler. The PET packaging flopped with consumers.
Hauerken wanted to modify only what was necessary and stick to the pattern recognition. Apart from the "old-fashioned pictures", only little was changed.
Six months later, Frank Hauerken draws a positive balance. He has realized many campaigns in his career: "Rarely have I seen such clear figures." He is impressed by the result, having initially thought it impossible to make a difference in the stagnating market.
Ultimately, the campaign achieved what advertisers dream of. It had a significant effect on sales figures. Overall, Unilever achieved a 6.5 percent increase in volume, according to market research firm AC Nielsen. Despite all the factors and trends working against the pumpkin vegetable, Unilever was able to sell more thanks to the campaign, even though Chirat is more expensive than the competition and the battle for consumers is predominantly fought on price. Unilever had to learn this painfully at the beginning of the campaign. A competitor launched a volume print campaign at the same time as the commercials were broadcast, triggering a stock buy. As a result, Chirat sold 32 percent less. This action initially distorted the effect of the TV campaign. Its full effect was seen in the following months. Thanks to the commercials, Unilever was able to significantly increase sales figures, and the crunchy cucumber is once again at the top of the list among young consumers.
Hauerken attributes the success of the campaign to the good foundation of the product. Rarely has he managed a brand with such robust figures. In addition, strategy and creation were optimally coordinated.
Hauerken remains critical, however, despite the success. It was clear to him that he had bought in "awareness" with the campaign. At the same time, however, he makes it clear that big brands need continuous communication. In the market environment of canned vinegar anyway. This is not a classic market for innovations, and there is little market potential. It is important to maintain the position and to keep reminding consumers that Chirat is one of the crunchiest.
Which they really are. Unilever produces directly next to the cucumber plantations in Turkey. Which doesn't make them Swiss cucumbers per se. "But the Chirat brand is genuinely Swiss," adds Frank Hauerken.
Christian Lüscher
