Long copy print ads have not been considered useful for many years. This long-copy print ad by Wunderman Thompson Spain for Heinz shows why they should be.

The full-page ad in the Guardian launched a campaign to introduce Heinz pasta sauces – 150 years after the world-famous brand began.  The ad apologisies to the British public and Heinz’ founder, Henry Heinz, for not creating the pasta sauce they deserve – until now. The copy explains how Heinz has created “probably the best pasta sauce you’ve ever tasted”, promising consumers that it was worth the wait, “because nothing so ridiculously good, has come so ridiculously late”.

Paco Badia, executive creative director at Wunderman Thompson Spain, explained, “Consumers love it when a brand like Heinz has the ability to laugh at itself. Before now, the brand had never released a range of pasta sauces in the UK, despite the fact that spaghetti Bolognese is one of the most popular dishes in the world and the third most-consumed dish in the UK. It was the perfect excuse for us to play up the brand’s tomato credentials with the launch, including how they produce their own tomato seeds, in the most Heinz-way possible, with a subtle and intelligent sense of humour.”

Caio Fontenele, new ventures director at Kraft-Heinz, added, “The launch of the new Heinz Pasta Sauces is an important step in our strategy to expand the brand into new categories. Despite our extensive agriculture heritage and tomato expertise, this is the first Heinz pasta sauce launched in the UK —a market where Heinz is annually ranked amongst the most loved food brands. It was natural to have launched a pasta sauce, but we didn’t. Yes, we are ridiculously late. The Wunderman Thompson collaboration and fresh eyes on our brand resulted in a powerful and simple campaign, that points up the iconicity of Heinz in a rejuvenated way without trying too hard. And the result is ridiculously good.”

The campaign is the result of a partnership between Wunderman Thompson and Heinz, with the agency involved in the conceptualisation of the product range from the very beginning, from the packaging design to defining the entire launch strategy.

Jose Maria Piera, chief client officer at Wunderman Thompson, commented, “It’s a great source of satisfaction to be trusted by a brand like Heinz, who is a world leader in their products. Their ambition and courage have been evident throughout the process, and it’s a joy to work with a client who has such a brave outlook on advertising in such a competitive market. We’re grateful to the Heinz team for their trust in creativity ‘made in Spain’, and are proud to be exporting our creativity to one of the greatest markets for advertising in the world. We hope it’s a source of inspiration for our industry peers, as an example of our Spanish creativity can transcend borders to be showcased on the world stage.”

The campaign is supported by digital, social media, and out-of-home assets, including a billboard in Leicester Square which features the seven sauces in the range and copy that says: “150 years late. 7 ways to apologise”. OOH assets have been produced by Kiwi Visuals with animations by Gimmewings. The campaign also includes 30-second TVCs and 20-second videos focusing on the products, which were produced by Oxígeno Productions, directed by Jorge Palomar Stasny and feature animation by Gimmewings Studio. Media planning and buying were handled by Carat UK.

Credits

Client: Kraft-Heinz
Heinz New Ventures Head of Adjacencies: Alexandra Bayet
Heinz New Ventures Director: Caio Fontanele

Creative Agency: Wunderman Thompson Spain
Chief Client Officer: José Maria Piera
Chief Creative Officer: David Caballero
Executive Creative Directors: Pipo Virgós & Paco Badia
Creative Director: Gloria Hernandez
Art Directors: Monica Casamor, Carlos Galán & Sergi Boixadera
Copywriters: Estel Ladra & Albert Xifra 
Strategic Director: Ana Alonso
Head of Production: Susanna Bergés
Account Directors: Natalia Gasulla & Alexandra Garrote
Account Executive: Bet Cunillera

Production Company: Oxígeno
Producer: Claudia Baurier
Director: Jorge Palomares Stasny
DOP: Daniel Robles