Two French winegrowers who are going out of business because of
booming beer sales are the stars of Scottish Courage’s pounds 3 million
Kronenbourg 1664 campaign, which breaks this week.
The 40-, 20- and 10-second ads, created by Young and Rubicam, continue
Kronenbourg’s ’characters’ campaign which focuses on people made
miserable by Kronenbourg’s success.
Gerard and Thierry, the hapless producers of Chateau Chatlac, are shown
labouring in their vineyard, farmhouse and cellars, and then plodding
around town trying to sell their wine. Unfortunately, the crowded bars
turn them down in favour of the premium lager, Kronenbourg 1664.
’The only people drinking Chateau Chatlac are me and him,’ Gerard
complains.
But, spotting Thierry sneaking a gulp of beer, he adds: ’Well, me,
anyway.’ The endline remains: ’Kronenbourg 1664. The best loved premium
beer in France.’
Jeff Stark directed the ads through Stark Films, adding a sepia tone to
the scenes of rural drudgery and brighter tints to the upbeat bar
scenes.
Art directed by Anita Davis and written by Paul Catmur, the spot aims to
give Kronenbourg real French urban character by juxtaposing the lives of
down-at-heel wine growers with the lives of the Kronenbourg-drinking
townsfolk.
It follows ’barman’, which showed a bartender who had been so good at
selling Kronenbourg that his wife would not let him retire, and
’pianist’, which featured a piano player whom punters ignored because
they were having too much fun drinking Kronenbourg.
Media on the campaign was bought by the Media Centre.
