Nestlé's Three Simple Steps to Combat Global Baking Trauma
According to surveys, 84 percent of consumers would like to bake more often but are deterred by the effort involved. Nestlé wants to put an end to this collective kitchen frustration and sticky bowls, so it’s putting its own staff in front of the camera: In an unfiltered baking showdown, Nestlé employees demonstrate how to make even the most challenging desserts in just three steps.
At m&k: A Look Inside the Engine Room Three months ago, on the shores of Lake Geneva, one thing became unmistakably clear: At Nestlé, every true brand innovation begins with a specific everyday need. Relevance isn’t created on the drawing board, but rather where consumers run into trouble in their daily lives. In the market for sweet mix-ins, this pain point is surprisingly widespread: A full 84 percent of people worldwide would love to bake more often if the process of making a cake weren’t so time-consuming and prone to mistakes. A global market potential of 98 billion Swiss francs is waiting to be freed from the realm of good intentions.
First the pain point, then the creation
This is precisely where Nestlé is focusing its efforts as it marks the 160th anniversary of its desserts division. This move marks the shift from individual baking ingredients to complete convenience systems: Sophisticated classics like tiramisu or pudding are designed to be on the table in exactly three preparation steps and less than a quarter of an hour of active preparation time. In the Ipsos tests, the recipe scored between 120 and 138—well above the benchmark of 115.
A Creative Reality Check Instead of Glossy Promises
The real challenge in terms of communication wasn't in the lab, but in how the message was conveyed. An advertising claim promising «tiramisu in three steps» quickly pushes the audience to the limits of their cynicism.
Here, a creative mechanism comes into play that takes the principle «show, don’t tell» literally: Instead of a traditional advertising production with cast actors, Nestlé organized an internal baking contest. Employees from within the company competed against each other on camera to test the concept under real-world conditions. The bake-off serves as an honest reality check. The message comes across with a touch of humor: If even colleagues from the administrative department can handle the dough without causing chaos, it’ll work in any home kitchen.
A platform for two cultural spheres
Strategically, this initiative reflects the motto formulated in Vevey: «Fewer, Bigger, Smarter.» A central technological platform adapts to two completely different food cultures. In Brazil, Nestlé leverages the trust associated with the traditional Moça brand for pudding and brigadeirão, while in China, varieties for cheesecake and tiramisu are being rolled out.
Stephanie Arnesen, Category Lead for Dairy Culinary Solutions in Nestlé's Food Strategic Business Unit, explains the rollout:
«Modern Cooking is a key growth platform for Nestlé, and the new range of dessert culinary solutions demonstrates what that strategy looks like in practice. We are taking a single innovation platform, adapting it to local dessert cultures, and launching it across multiple markets from the very beginning. Combining global scale with local relevance is how we continue to grow and innovate. By bringing together our culinary expertise and deep understanding of consumer needs, we are helping consumers create delicious homemade desserts with greater confidence.»
The launch is accompanied by an omnichannel campaign featuring creator-driven content, social media content, e-retail, and experiential marketing at the point of sale. This case study exemplifies what modern brand management requires: Instead of flooding the market with products through advertising, it solves a tangible problem—and communicates it with such a creative idea that consumers truly believe it will work in their own kitchens.
