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No Name name checks itself in new campaign

By Christopher Lombardo
September 10, 2019

no-name-commercialIt has had some of the most recognizable branding and design on Canadian grocery shelves for decades, and now No Name is bringing its bichromatic impact to a mass campaign, building awareness of its “Simple Check” logo and health attributes.

The campaign builds on a concept Loblaw’s discount private label brand has been playing with on social in recent months with its branded Twitter account, with cheeky posts riffing on No Name products attributes, like “not an empty can” for evaporated milk, or “can be tied slowly” for quick-tie garbage bags.

Uwe Stueckmann, SVP, marketing at Loblaw, says the account received a very positive response for its humour, which revealed a deeper connection to the simple approach No Name takes and its ability to “make products more accessible for all Canadians.”

On Friday, the typically quiet No Name brand launched its integrated campaign, led by spots where a yellow room with black Helvetica font depicts a meta advertising shoot, announcing itself as “a No Name commercial for Simple check products” with obvious signage for “floor,” “glass” and “30-second commercial.”

Stueckmann says the creative approach makes No Name’s pared back packaging and stripped down product names the hero of the campaign. The goal is to give people a “glimpse into the world and culture of the No Name brand,” he says: while its simplicity is typically associated with a no-frills approach that results in a less expensive product, the spots also emphasize that it results in not adding artificial flavours, synthetic colours or MSG to its products, highlighted by the “Simple Check” logo on many products.

John St. and Dentsu worked on the campaign, which also includes OOH subway takeovers, as well as two murals in downtown Toronto.

Regarding the OOH, Stueckmann says the brand colours have stopping power on billboards in the same way that they have stopping power in the grocery aisle. He adds that it lent itself to over-scaled billboards, murals and subway stations.