IKEA Canada’s latest campaign takes a fantastical approach to the very real connection between peoples’ homes and their happiness.
“The Troll” is a two-minute film about a lonely troll who works as a tollbooth collector and the boy who helps to brighten up his home under the bridge. He arrives one day with one of the retailer’s recognizable blue bags, full of various light fixtures, décor and pieces of furniture that are put together with an Allen key.
The spot ends with the previously grumpy troll showing a smile in his new, happy home. It is the next iteration of the IKEA “Bring Home to Life” platform, which launched in 2022 and is built around the insight of strengthening the connections between our homes and the lives we lead there.
“We wanted to tell this very beautiful story,” says Johanna Andren, head of marketing at IKEA Canada, “to demonstrate how IKEA can influence that relationship between our home and well-being.”
According to Andren, a fantastical message, especially of this kind, is a perfect way to bridge the gap between the magic of the holidays and people coming back to work amidst grey, dreary weather.
The campaign ladders back to the launch effort for “Bring Home To Life,” in which figures are rendered static in a home, before being brought to life once it’s fully furnished. The new campaign concept is building on the idea, and through the relationship between the creature and the young boy is even more strongly connected to mental health and well-being, while keeping the surreal elements.
The campaign, by Rethink, will be running in Canada and Australia until April.
“The choice of a troll, is unexpected but still based on strong recognition,” Andren says, telling strategy that based on pre-tests, there is a strong emotional attachment between the creature and the caring child. “The insight is universal…and if any market wants to pick it up, we can make it happen.”
At the end of the day, IKEA’s marketing is about furniture and home accessories, but Andren says IKEA brand campaigns always start with a larger insight, rather than being tied to a specific product, like any of the ones featured in the new film.
“The Troll” was directed by Nick Ball, and the creature was created by Czech puppet maker Martin Pec and brought to life using both animatronic and post-production elements.
In addition to the film, the campaign includes OOH, social and digital elements, as well as cinema. All of the Canadian IKEA retail locations will also feature the troll in-store. There is also more of social element for this campaign, with SnapChat playing a key role.
Ad spend is not as large as the first iteration of fall’s “Bring Home to Life.” Carat is behind the media buy.
