Intent
The requirement was to reposition the Mars global gum brands, Orbit, Extra, Freedent and Yida in each market under one unified look, tone and feel, with a focus on a Gen-Z audience. Why? Covid saw a 60% decline in the gum category, impulse channels disappeared before our eyes, alongside traditional purchase drivers and occasions.
Reverse the 60% decline in the gum category
The challenge
A surprising statistic: 47% chew gum for a mental break. With this insight we re-framed OEFY from outer-directed breath-confidence, to an inner-directed everyday mental wellbeing tool. A small chance to re-centre in a stressful world.
47% chew gum for a mental break
The idea
We removed dental-freshness conventions. We liberated and amplified the logo roundel, making it our Recenter-Ring. It’s a brand beacon that interacts with talent and product, marking the shift to inner-directed mental reset. Alongside a brand-world redesign we created a bespoke cheeky typeface called ‘chew la la’. Inspired by the rhythmic motion of chewing, the characters stretch, with ink traps that reveal hidden smiles and winks. All designed to bring more emotion and color, to what traditionally has been a functional product driven category dominated by fresh breath and confidence messaging.
The impact
The redesign led to a 15% increase in sales in China, Germany & UK. Whilst France surged by an unprecedented 15-20%, making OEFY the fastest-growing brand in Mars Confectionery portfolio. This vibrant, light-hearted and positively uplifting pioneering brand redesign exceeded all targets, becoming the most effective in OEFY’s history. We increased penetration amongst under-30s AND boosted category penetration in 59 of 60 markets.
