The UK instant coffee market is pretty crowded. Many brands use the same colours (yellows, reds and browns), similar imagery (swirls, perfect cups and fake
scenarios) and the same words (aromas, blends and tastes). When people get to the crowded coffee aisle in the supermarket, they either automatically reach for the market leader or they look for a price deal.
Where was Douwe Egberts in this?
18 months ago, Douwe Egberts sat a distant third place in the UK coffee market. It was losing relevance, viewed as the “grandmother of coffee” – a bit old-fashioned and traditional. While people associated the brand with quality and expertise, these were not different or motivating reasons to buy it. So people didn’t, unless, more often than not, it was on price deal.
It was a brand in decline. A brand in trouble
Taking inspiration
The craft, care and quality (from 260 years’ expertise) that goes into Douwe Egberts Coffee goes into the jar itself. The jar is made of glass, not plastic. It has a unique sealable lid, which protects the coffee and keeps it fresh. The more we understood how much people loved the coffee and the jar, the more we realised that a real story was unfolding when the coffee had gone.
People used their empty jars for storing pens, pasta, keep-sakes, sweets, coins, holding candles, displaying flowers and paintbrushes. Their jars had pride of place in cupboards, offices, sheds, bedrooms, garages and classrooms, long after the
coffee had gone.
The Idea
The unique and recognisable Douwe Egberts jar – and the relationship that people have with it – allowed us to remind consumers of the good things about the brand. It became the inspiration for an 18-month campaign running across TV, print, social media channels and partnerships in-store. It has enabled the brand to stand out from the crowd – to tell a different story in the category by focussing not just on the product, but on its packaging too.
No ordinary jar. No ordinary coffee.
• In today’s throwaway society, this idea inspired people to re-use, not just recycle.
• Then idea stimulated thousands of people through social media; they showed us how they up-cycle their jars.
• Fuelled directly by the up-cycling story, the campaign even saw the jar get its own designer makeover, with more than 1m limited edition Orla Kiely-designed jars appearing on supermarket shelves.
Results
In 18 months, market share has doubled. Douwe Egberts has been the fastest-growing instant coffee brand in the UK over the past year (2015) and is now the number two brand in the UK market. As a result of the campaign, 2m glass jars have been up-cycled.
Hugh Treacy is managing director of Arnold KLP
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