pladis UK&I - McVities 100 years of Milk Chocolate Digestives
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pladis turned McVitie’s Milk Chocolate Digestives’ 100th birthday into a multi-phased, through-the-line cultural campaign, led by premium ATL, earned-first PR and immersive experiential activity, to re-establish the brand at the heart of British culture and reengage light and lapsed buyers.
The challenge was to make a heritage anniversary feel modern and relevant in a category under inflationary pressure, with intense competition from private label and premium brands, while ensuring increased fame translated into real instore behavior and commercial impact.
pladis delivered record ad awareness, doubled brand buzz, significant gains in brand equity (Meaningful +12, Salience +14), penetration growth (+2.2pts), 580k+ new households, strong retailer performance and high IRL engagement—proving culturefirst brand building can drive measurable growth.
Delivered through One pladis, bringing together Brand, Commercial Planning, Customer, Shopper and Corporate Affairs teams, global markets, and media, creative and PR agency partners, close collaboration was crucial to ensure integrated delivery and consistent execution.
In place, is a proven blueprint for confident, culture‑first brand building that strengthens long‑term equity, justifies premium pricing and drives sustainable growth, now scalable across markets and future McVitie’s campaigns.
Judges' Comment
“The campaign evaluation was exceptional, clearly linking brand equity gains to commercial outcomes rather than relying solely on fame metrics. The overarching concept and integrated multichannel approach were highly impressive, while the use of comprehensive measurement frameworks was exemplary and set a strong industry benchmark. This was an outstanding entry across creative ambition, timing, campaign measurement, stakeholder engagement and commercial validation. With planning beginning a year in advance, the campaign demonstrated a highly polished execution and would make an excellent case study.”
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