Vachon is tapping into 1990s nostalgia to bring an old Quebec snacking favourite to a new audience.

The campaign supports the launch of Rosettes sponge cakes to Ontario and Atlantic Canada, and is targeting an audience that grew up during a decade of loud colours, vintage VHS-quality cinematography and pop-culture allusions.

Patrick Michaud, creative director at Vachon’s longtime AOR Cossette, said the campaign appeals to a cross-section of Canadians with a concept that “bridges memory and discovery.”

“By tapping into the aesthetic and the culture of the ’90s, we found the perfect way to bring nostalgic Gen X and millennial audiences together with younger generations around one bold idea,” Michaud said in a news release. “From the art direction to the soundtrack, every element was carefully chosen to reflect the era.”

Inspired by long afternoons talking on the phone while watching TV staples like MuchMusic, the creative centres on a functional brand hotline that leads customers to sweepstakes offers and ’90s-themed prizes.

“Bringing Rosettes to a new audience isn’t just about launching a product – it’s about bringing the best back of a decade we all loved,” Bernardo Caupers, marketing director of sweet baked goods and snacks at Bimbo Canada, said in the release. “This cake holds a special place in the hearts of many Quebecers. Now, we’re inviting other Canadians to experience that same sense of warmth – whether it sparks a memory or creates a new one.”

Launched on May 6 across Quebec, Ontario and the Atlantic provinces, the Rosette campaign includes digital video and social content, as well as the fully functional hotline. PHD Toronto served as the media agency.

Vachon and Cossette have a history of looking to the past in creative. In a campaign to celebrate Vachon’s centenary two years ago, Cossette brightened the smiles on Depression-era faces by adding snack-cake flair to images sourced from the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec.

A second centenary campaign in fall 2023 sent couch potatoes back in time to 1960s Montreal to meet an old-timey wrestler via a Jos Louis snack-cake portal. At the time, Vachon senior marketing manager Maryna Shcherbyna said the ads served “to remind everyone that our brand has been an integral part of our lives and national snacking heritage.”