What do knitting, delighting the world with perfectly synchronised dives, and a palm tree-branded rum based drink named Malibu have in common? You guessed it… Tom Daley.
Although he’s just announced his retirement from the sport after nabbing a silver medal in Paris, the Olympic legend has a fresh pair of Speedo-shaped briefs – but this time they’re hand-knitted and carry an important message across them: ‘Don’t drink and dive’.
The brain-child of Pernod Ricard-owned Malibu with its creative agency Wieden and Kennedy, the move is part of a collaboration with non-profit organisation the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS), which is raising awareness of alcohol-related drowning incidents in the UK.
Despite Daley’s retirement announcement coming out of leftfield, Malibu’s global vice president of marketing Craig van Niekerk feels the message will still make its mark.
“It was a curveball but in a positive way. As a team you have to ask yourself how do you make the most of the opportunity and connect it to the work you’re doing,” van Niekerk says.
“And it’s the first thing he’s done since his retirement, so it’s actually very positive for us.”
One thing’s for sure, whether it’s Olympians, oat milk brands or fashion brands, Malibu is experienced when it comes to collaborations. But what is the key to nailing it all while avoiding the brand version of a bellyflop?
Non-profit messaging: ‘You have to be bold, but don’t do it blindly’
Because of Malibu’s long-standing association with summery and paradise-like imagery of palm trees and beaches which goes back years and Tom Daley’s passion for diving, van Niekerk felt the collaboration was a no-brainer.
But due to the seriousness of the issue ( around 73 people die each year through a substance-related drowning, accounting for almost a third of all fatalities) they had to get it right. To gauge how the tone would work, van Niekerk says the team “did a lot of work around trying to understand the impact and severity of the problem”.
This involved detailed sense checks – Malibu spoke to impacted families who had lost loved ones to drinking and drowning and drew on consumer testing. For van Niekerk, it’s imperative for brands to ask the right questions.
“Does what we’re trying to do resonate with people? Do they get it and do they see that balance between the light-hearted personality of Malibu and the serious problem we’re trying to tackle in our tone of voice?
“You have to be bold and have courage and conviction, but you also can’t do it blindly,” van Niekerk adds, highlighting that once the tone is nailed it “builds a lot more confidence” about being able to put the work out there.
Crucially, the brand already had a plan in mind at inception, which helped keep messaging clear. It was Malibu who contacted both Tom Daley and the RLSS about working on the initiative.
The team drew inspiration from the UK’s famous Don’t Drink Drive campaigns, van Niekerk says. Back in Christmas 2021, Diageo partnered with Think! Don’t Drink Drive to create a digital and social programme – the message was to not discourage the fun but also highlight the importance of knowing when to stop.
Regardless of whether a brand chooses to do a winter- or summer-themed collaboration, van Niekerk adds that joining forces with a non-profit is very different from collaborating with other businesses, mainly because there’s less competition.
“Typically, when two big brands come together there’s an element of will you get your fair share of the conversation? Will people understand that it’s from both brands or one or will one trump the other,” van Niekerk says.
“When you’re partnering with non-profits it’s much more about what’s the purpose? What’s the impact. So you have much more robust conversations about whether you’re walking the talk.”
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Malibu and Oatly – more than just a pretty cone
And van Niekerk certainly knows about the business of collaborating with other companies, especially when it’s in bold and summery ways, like driving a 4.5 metre high giant pineapple-shaped mixer past the House of Commons, the London Eye and The Shard.
That was to mark the launch of Malibu’s new Piña Oatlada collaboration (which is a piña colada-flavoured, dairy-free soft serve) with dairy-free milk alternative Oatly.
Practical complexities included not just getting the flavour right, but figuring out how to make a cone that was shaped like a piña colada glass – and apparently it’s very complicated making an ice cream cone that isn’t cylindrical.
Malibu had to bring on board set designers and builders and tried 40 different 3D technology machines in the Netherlands. In the end it took four to five months to come up with a solution.
At the time, Oatly’s executive director Martin Ringqvist said: “If you think adulting is hard, try getting a soft-serve campaign approved by two sets of lawyers!” – alluding to the fact that marrying two businesses and their particularities takes a lot of process ( intellectual property is just one consideration).
According to van Niekerk, any brand looking to tap into the power of collaborations should note that it always takes “at least double the time and is really complicated in terms of the moving parts and stakeholders”.
“There’s synchronising of launch plans. Who’s leading on PR? Who’s reaching out to who? What’s the process if something goes wrong on social media? Who responds?”
Where the two brands align is through their playful messaging – Malibu’s known for its laid-back attitude, while Oatly is known for its brave and sometimes provocative outlook (it’s gained enemies both within and outside the oat milk world).
The final product is 1.25% ABV which taps into a trend towards lower alcohol products, just like Oatly taps into a move away from dairy-only options – both helping connect with a youthful audience, something which both brands share.
Breaking through the pain barrier
Knowing your partners strengths is also key to a successful collaboration.
“It was quite natural between us in terms of what we could bring to the table,” van Niekerk continues.
“Make sure you know the strengths of each of your partners and empower them to lead in that area. Because if you try to lead everything you will do a good or average job at everything, but you won’t excel at anything.”
Sometimes collaborating will mean a brand has to take a risk with something outside its comfort zone.
“If you trust the process, and both partners know what they want to achieve at the end of the day, that’s how you can get a successful outcome. But there needs to be that moment of discomfort,” van Niekerk says.
“If there isn’t, then you’re not pushing far enough”.
