Cheryl Hunter (shelflife at marklives.com)’s weekly pick of all things new — product, packaging, design, insight, food, décor and more!
- KWV’s Cruxland flying off shelf
- Sixty years of Play-Doh
Making the Cruxland brand rock
Last year, Paarl-based wine and spirits manufacturer KWV took advantage of the popular craft-spirit trend by introducing its own boutique-style handcrafted gin — Cruxland — and partnered with several mixed media artists to create what they say is their most successful marketing effort to date.
Cruxland was specifically crafted to appeal to those seeking a ‘new-world’ gin drinking experience: infused with the ‘mythical’ Kalahari N’abbas (truffles), it is also a world-first.
To capture the intended target market — drinkers seeking novel and authentic drinking experiences — Anneke Mackenzie, KWV’s global portfolio manager for spirits, called for a through-the-line awareness campaign from ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi Brandsrock: “We believed that the story of Cruxland could be told in a more captive way by steering away from ‘traditional’ advertising and marketing channels.”
In line with this brand focus, KWV partnered with five mixed media artists: tattooist Lee Herbert, mixologist Jeff Lopes, videographer Rory Allen, photographer Luke Daniel and illustrator Baden Moir. They were briefed to share their individual experiences of Cruxland gin by employing the medium they felt most comfortable using. The result? An artistic mix of photography, artwork and a short film, which reflect the stark beauty of the Kalahari. These works were all displayed at a Cape Town art gallery, Young Blood.
“Customer insights showed that we were speaking to an audience driven by discovery, experimenting and sharing of information with peers,” says Mackenzie.
This information was put to good use when KWV announced that Cruxland would be exclusively available, for one month only, from Yuppiechef.com: “This was a perfect match that immediately elicited interest from both consumers and trade.” KWV then opened sales to wider channels, where sales surpassed all expectations when a year’s forecast volumes sold out in only four months.
“The launch of Cruxland gin is every marketer’s dream, I believe the success story of Cruxland is mainly attributed to the fact that we were authentic in our approach, we knew our product and we knew our target audience, and we told the story of Cruxland in a way that resonated with the relevant market,” she says.
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New toys for 60th
In celebration of its 60th anniversary, Hasbro brand Play-Doh has launched Play-Doh Town where children can build their own worlds filled with creativity.
Play-Doh Town includes customisable figures, characters, and town-themed playsets and vehicles, and includes scenes kids are familiar with in their own world, motivating interest and experimentation with different career choices.
The range of characters and playsets is intended to allow kids to use their imaginations and create unique stories each time they play. The collectible Play-Doh Town characters and playsets may be used individually or together to create an expanded full city play experience.
Play-Doh Town is set to launch in-store from April 2016 and will be available from Toys R Us, Toy Kingdom, Hamleys and other major retailers.
Shelf Life is MarkLives.com’s weekly column covering all things new. Notify us of yours at shelflife at marklives dot com. Want to sponsor Shelf Life? Contact us here.
Cheryl Hunter (@cherylhunter) has written for the South African media, marketing and advertising industries for more than 15 years. A former editor of M&M in Independent Newspapers and contributor to Bizcommunity, AdFocus, AdReview and the Ad Annual, she has also produced for various television networks and currently consults on communication strategy and media liaison.
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