Mars has overhauled its chewing gum offering with the launch of a new global brand platform ‘Chew Good’, backed by a bumper media spend of £39.2m ($50m), repositioning its Orbit, Extra, Freedent, Yida brands as essential everyday products.
Created in partnership with Team Omnicom and lead agency Energy BBDO, the new platform is Mars’ most significant change to its chewing gum brands in 100 years.
Energy BBDO chief creative officer Josh Gross said: “Gum has always been this thing we chew to be outwardly more confident or attractive to others. But it gets really interesting when you think about what gum can do for you inwardly, especially considering the totally bonkers world we’re living in”.
Playing on this notion of inward reflection, the agencies created a platform that represents “unconventional me moments” for consumers living in an increasingly chaotic world.
Visuals shot by photographer Hanina look to refocus the brands’ strategy and differentiate from its previous campaigns using a disruptive, poppy, quirky aesthetic dubbed by Mars as “Chewtopia”.
Engaging the coveted under-25’s demographic was a key focus for the brand project, as Gen Z was found to be the most likely to chew gum of any age group.
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The CPG giant is also rolling out a new category-defying ad campaign comprising five hero films titled ‘Mind Mouth’ that seek to put a twist on universally relatable moments, like when we are in a meeting, reading in a library or attending a lecture.
As well as film assets, ‘Chew Good’ will include a collection of brand activations in local markets, streaming radio assets, an AR Snapchat lens, and a large suite of social content deployed across all channels.
Mars Snacking global gum and mints portfolio VP Alyona Fedorchenko said: “Chew Good, two words that remind us that no matter where you are, or what you’re doing, there’s a simple way to take a bite sized me-moment with Orbit, Extra, Freedent, Yida gum”.
“And we are completely unapologetic in trying to support that endeavour, it’s what consumers are telling us they want from our brand, and it’s what we intend to deliver, one chew at a time, with the launch of this exciting new platform.”
