Romanian chocolate bar becomes the surprise star of Cannes

Tim Burrowes

June 21, 2011 5:30

A relatively small scale campaign for a Romanian chocolate bar has emerged as a global star of Cannes, winning the grand prix in both the Direct Lions and Promo Lions categories.

The campaign by McCann Erickson tapped into Romanian patriotism to reinvigorate sales of the Rom snack.

The chocolate bar – a staple since 1964 with a Romanian flag on the wrapper – had struggled to win over younger consumers who leaned towards US brands.

According to the agency’s award entry: “We challenged youngsters’ national Ego by replacing the Romanian flag on the package with the American one, and announcing it in the mass-media. We fostered and encouraged public debate triggered by the “American take-over”. We closely monitored and responded to public reactions. After a few days, following massive patriotic resurgence, ignited and developed especially in the social media, we brought back the old ROM, as Romanian as ever.”

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Tim Burrowes

I write about the world's media and marketing industry from an Australian perspective Australian lens. I've worked in the UK, Middle East, Asia & Australia. I founded Mumbrella, which we sold in 2017.