With far fewer trips to the coffee shop taking place thanks to COVID, Danone Canada created a campaign for its creamer brand International Delight that puts the focus on at-home java occasions.

“Live Life to the Flavourest” is an integrated campaign in which comedians Ann Pornel and Mariana Mazza wield comically oversized mugs in their kitchens and take jabs at how “boring” it is to just add milk and sugar to a morning coffee. The colourful spot showcases a range of flavours and represents a transition from merely enhancing coffee to making a whole experience out of creamer.

As more consumers try their hand at making their own caramel macchiatos or other specialty concoctions one might grab at Starbucks, Fiona O’Brien, director of marketing at Danone Canada, says International Delight, which is the number one creamer in the category, directly competing against Nestle Coffee Mate, sees an opportunity as fancy coffee culture goes DIY.

The giant saucer mugs, meanwhile, are a riff on just how much coffee consumption is currently happening at home, says O’Brien.

“There was an opportunity to position the brand around moments of joy and enjoyment,” says O’Brien. “[The campaign is] based on insights that consumers really enjoy the indulgence of a creamer experience and playing around with different flavours, rather than it being simply a way for those not too fond of coffee, to be able to enjoy it [too].”

The multiple SKUs featured in the creative are informed by feedback the brand frequently receives on social media, where consumers express a desire for more flavours. “One day you’re vanilla, another day you’re Irish cream,” O’Brien says. “The variety is the spice of life and it adds love and excitement to potentially boring at-home coffee experiences.”

The integrated campaign launched on Blue Monday, the year’s “saddest day,” to build around the brand’s joy-centred positioning, will run until mid-March. It was created in collaboration with Momentum, Wavemaker, Carl Social Club and National PR. The campaign includes a nationwide social media contest, TV spots, shopper marketing, online video and a strategic paid media partnership with Caméra Café – a French language comedy television series.