Going ape for Cadbury
It’s not easy to forget the Cadbury Dairy Milk “Gorilla” TV commercial, in which a 200pound primate smashes out a drum solo in Phil Collins’ 1981 hit, In the Air Tonight .It prompted an almost 10% rise in chocolate sales and cleaned up at numerous ad and design awards.
Believe it or not, the ad was shot down by execs when London agency Fallon first presented it. Remember that the ad makes no mention of the product, it simply ends with the slogan: “A glass and a half full of joy”.
Four months of wangling and a few rounds of research later, it went viral.
Out of interest, the gorilla costume was sourced from Stan Winston Studio in Hollywood — it appeared in the 1995 film Congo, loosely based on Michael Crichton’s novel of the same name. For effect, grey hairs were sewn onto the costume to give the gorilla a more thuggish look and, if you look carefully, you can see an accoutrement: a single gold tooth.
Cadbury’s drumming gorilla was utterly compelling for the same reason many great ads are: it challenged the norm and went for heart over head.
Old-timer
I learnt this week that Cadbury has been in SA for 80 years. Yes, 80.
With its purple packaging, the brand is arguably the most conspicuous contender in the sweet aisle. Like Adidas and Nestlé, the firm has gone to the mattresses to protect its distinction – in this case, Pantone 2685C.
Cadbury was originally sold in SA through sales agents, with the first locally produced bars moulded in its Port Elizabeth factory in 1938.
The site, which sits in front of the North End Lake, has expanded over the years as the company’s range has grown and it has had to adopt technology such as ultrasonic guillotines and robots that stack boxes.
If, like me, you’re a Flake fan, here’s a fun fact: Flake was developed in the UK in 1920 after an employee noticed that when excess chocolate was drained from the moulds, it fell in a stream and created a light, flaky folded chocolate. Et voilà!
Last week Cadbury’s parent, Mondelez International, revealed its new strategic vision. The company, like every other packaged-food giant, is having to rethink its game plan to reach millennial consumers who are more into fresh foods and artisanal or niche brands.
Mondelez is set to spend more on its sales, marketing, distribution and logistics capabilities over the next few years.
New CEO Dirk Van de Put also said the company plans to invest more in its broad portfolio of local brands in emerging markets, where 38% of its net revenue is made. It expects them to grow at a mid-single-digit rate compared with low-single-digit growth for developed markets.
The company is projecting about $2.8bn in free cash flow for next year.
Meanwhile, in the UK, Mondelez is reportedly stockpiling ingredients, chocolates and biscuits in case of a no-deal Brexit.
Fears are mounting that the UK may fail to agree on terms of its withdrawal from the EU by the March Brexit deadline. A no-deal withdrawal will likely cause delays at borders as a result of customs checks — checks that aren’t currently required, as the UK is part of the customs union and single market.
Mondelez Europe president Hugh Weber told The Times of London:
“Like the whole of the food and drink industry in the UK, we would prefer a good deal that allows the free flow of products as that would have less of an impact [on] the UK consumer.”
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