Making a brand relevant again.

By the time the brief arrived, Hooch had long passed its sell by date with the drinkers that the brand wanted to attract. Adverse headlines about alcopops had damaged not just the perceptions of the brand, but sales too. Action was needed. A new audience had to be found. Or rather, the old audience had made to feel welcome again. The brand had to be seen to be current. To be able to be ‘seen’ with again… Drinkable, again.

The campaign line was “That little bit sharper”, and though lemon couldn’t be ignored (being a key ingredient), out went the wicked lemon character of old, and in came a new cooler brand style with edgy graphics, metallic backgrounds, and an association with club culture.

This piece of CRM went out as follow up to a hand-raising mailer (itself, clearly positioned at being seen to be in the know: a self-mixed piece of 7” vinyl was sent to those who responded a magazine insert made to look like a club flyer), and its premise was very much ahead of the curve in all that became reality TV: we sent six clubbers (not actors) on a road-trip from Glasgow to Brighton, via Newcastle, Leeds and Birmingham and some of the country’s hottest clubs, and got them to film themselves – with Hooch as the drink of choice. A competition mechanic ensured the film was watched at least twice.

Concept & Creative Direction by Robert Crampton