Do you even yuzu? President’s Choice really thinks you should

Who: President’s Choice, Sid Lee for creative, media by Dentsu and Citizen for PR, with Loblaw Companies Ltd.’s internal media and creative teams also contributing.

What: “Do you yuzu?” a summer campaign tied to the launch of the new Insiders Report and featuring products made with yuzu.

What’s a yuzu? “Imagine lime, lemon, and orange had a sweet mysterious little baby.” (See the ad below.)

When & Where: The campaign is rolling out today with a large media buy across TV, digital and out-of-home, and a big push on TikTok starting next week. The new Insiders Report is also live online now.

Why: Each year the President’s Choice product development team comes up with a range of new products for summer. “This year, we just had this unbelievable discovery of yuzu that we felt needed to be talked about in a really big way,” said Meghan Nameth, senior vice-president of marketing for Loblaw Companies Limited. Loblaw has introduced eight different products made with yuzu, including including Japanese-style cheesecake, hot sauce and lemonade, all of which are featured in the summer Insiders Report.

“So we’re really using many different channels to reach customers to tell them about this flavour and how awesome it is,” said Nameth.

How: The campaign kicks off with a 30-second TV spot featuring Toronto-based comedian, actress and host of CBC’s The Great Canadian Baking Show, Ann Pornel (who we recently saw starring in ads for Danone Canada).

In the ad, Pornel both explains what yuzu is to the many people who may be hearing about it for the first time, before showing some of the new PC products made with yuzu. “It’s really helping everyone understand that this isn’t a flavour that is only in a juice. This is a flavour that makes anything, from coffee to cheese cake to hot sauce, better,” said Nameth.

Pornel also brought an energy to the ad that so many people are yearning for this summer after 14 months of the pandemic, she said. “It’s really fun, and I think that’s what she brings to the table.”

And on TikTok? “The acceleration, and the interest that consumers have had in TikTok makes it a great platform to be on because that’s where our consumers are,” said Nameth. PC will have both owned and sponsored content created by and for PC. There’s also a #DoYouYuzu TikTok challenge launching next week (May 29).

“It’s not just an advertising campaign. It’s really to spark conversation with the TikTok community and invite people to get really creative with our products and our yuzu products in particular,” said Nameth. “Everyone’s at home and in their kitchen creating, and this is a great opportunity for them to participate and be inspired by the creative community on TikTok.”

David Brown