Tui had lost its way. It’s advertising relied on using sexy girls to build Kiwi 'bloke' appeal. While that had worked for years, the Tui drinker (25 to 29) had moved on. With the mainstream beer category in decline and the brand losing relevance, we needed to take action. We created the brand essence 'always something brewing' which was about bringing to life the antics that happen when blokes get together. We set out to challenge perceptions that we were a brand past its prime by doing something to generate true social currency and fresh momentum for the brand.
So Tui Brewery pulled off the ultimate stunt on an unsuspecting Tui Drinker while he was on holiday. Tui would take over his house and re-plumb it completely with delicious, crispy cool Tui Beer. No actors, no sets, no script, just some clever tradesmen, 14 security cameras, 12 kegs of beer and no guarantee it would work and all done completely for real.
Channel-wise, this wasn't something you launched on TV. Consumers needed to discover it organically, endorse it and pass it on for it to have impact and become truly 'viral'.