You have to love the creative minds that made a paper towel brand the centre of attention during the Valentine’s Day ad explosion. This is how they did it.
Because love is messy, Essity’s kitchen roll brand Plenty is proposing that “those three words we long to hear” are in fact “I’ll clean up”. Research reveals that British couples see cleaning as a desired act of love and that partners who clean for each other enjoy stronger relationships.
So, AMV BBDO and Plenty are suggesting that Brits ditch the expensive gifts or the petrol station bouquet and turn their partner on by rolling up their sleeves and getting our scrub-on.
To encourage this – for many, strange – behaviour change, Plenty is launching Vow To Clean, offering couples the chance to win one of three free wedding ceremonies**when they commit to cleaning in their wedding vows. Couples can enter at: https://www.plenty.com/en/love-is-messy-competition/ (T&Cs apply)
The new, hilariously surprising campaign continues Plenty’s Love is Messy platform, created in 2020. It has its roots in the insight that healthier relationships to mess make for stronger relationships with one another, and a new commissioned survey of 1000 British couples that reveals that cleaning is an act of love. The research reveals that 72% of Brits believe that a partner proactively cleaning around the house is a display of love – one that is particularly important for the younger generation (80%+). And 71% of them believe cleaning is a fundamental part of a healthy cohabitating relationship – 1 in 3 even believe that cleaning should be added as a vow in marriage.
Today, acts like cleaning the kitchen and taking the bins out appear to be much more evenly split amongst couples with both men and women saying they share the effort in their relationships. However, tension remains when it comes to doing the general cleaning up around the house – in fact, research has shown that 1 in 4 marriages end because disagreements over housework***.
Plenty’s findings also shows that over 60% of Brits would rather have a clean kitchen than a bunch of flowers. 8 in 10 say that their partner cleaning up spills around the house is more important than a romantic display with rose petals and candles. Over half say cleaning out the hair from the shower is a better gift than being drawn in a surprise bubble bath (52%). And for those with pets, over 60% of say cleaning up after messy fur babies is more important than getting a foot rub.
AMV BBDO is amplifying the campaign in social media campaign, including a 20-second video teaser encapsulating the campaign’s playful essence and offering a glimpse into what the couple’s big day could look like. Ketchum is the PR agency supporting the work.
Essity UK brand manager, Leanne McLeod, commented, “By bringing this unique insight to life through a fun, engaging creative, we want to start a campaign to encourage the nation to clean for each other, so their love stays stronger and Plenty is thought of as an ally in positive cleaning behaviours.”
AMV BBDO creative partner, Andre Sallowicz, added, “By reframing functional cleaning as an indispensable act of love, we’re challenging traditional notions of romance and celebrating the everyday moments that strengthen relationships in a memorable way, at people’s wedding vows. We talk about ‘in sickness and in health’, but what about ‘in cleanliness and in mess’?”.
NOTES:
*Plenty Love is Messy online survey to 1002 British people in relationships, carried out by Focaldata January 2024
**T&Cs apply and can be found at https://www.plenty.com/en/love-is-messy-competition/ . The wedding ceremony will take place in London on a weekday in March. The service will be led by a celebrant, but it won’t be legally binding. Plenty will provide venue, decorations, flowers, music for the ceremony. Further details will be shared with successful applicants. The wedding will not be legally-binding.
***Harvard Business, 2018, via NY Times, Fighting Over Chores? Spend Some Money, Save the Marriage
Credits:
Client: Essity (Plenty)
Client Team: Martina Poulopati, Ekaterina Strelchenko, Luana Lennertz & Leanne McLeod
Creative Agency: AMV BBDO
CCOs: Nicholas Hulley & Nadja Lossgott
Creative Directors: Andre Sallowicz & Polina Zabrodskaya
Creative Team: Ben Smith, Dan Kennard & Prabhu Wignarajah
Creative Design Director: Vanessa Fowler-Kendall
Agency Planning Team: Margaux Revol & Marina Glavan
Project Manager: Jackie Kinrade
Agency Account Team: Anna Covell, Helen Limbrey & Louise Mather
Agency Production Team: Ian Whittle & Maggie Scriven
Media Agency: Zenith
PR Agency: Ketchum
