MrDay Relaunch

Background: In 2010, we took part in the re-launch project of the Mr Day brand, which had been sold to Vicenzi Biscotti by Parmalat in 2005. During the first 5 years, the brand continued to suffer greatly to the point that drastic and, to some extent, irreversible decisions were touched on. In any case, in 2009, it was decided to give the brand a chance as it had been reasonably successful and had also had a good communication support in the 1980s and 1990s. Convinced by the good awareness and some market research which gave it credit, we started, certain that we could revive the brand. And it was a success.

Over the last 13 years, the brand has done a lot, seeking to talk to the shopper in many ways and, at the same time, involve the new generations, interpreting and talking their language, imagining themselves in their place and going with them on the difficult path of growing up. In 2021, the briefing for the new development of Mr Day arose from this.

Strategy: The brand has always mainly directed its communication at the shopper. After all these years, the need to communicate more with the target consumer, i.e. Gen. Z aged between 10 and 18, was felt. Despite great consideration for the shopper, the brand wants to be the ‘go-to’ product for teens in all their daily breaks (from breakfast to afternoon snack, on their own or with friends, and especially in breaks from their favourite videogames), always in a pleasing, amusing way, incorporating the ‘playful’ positioning of the Brand. At the same time, Mr. Day aims to become ‘everyone’s afternoon snack’. The product ‘features’ of being lactose-free, gluten-free and without milk proteins should be interpreted ‘inclusively’, stressing how these products target everyone and not just those with specific needs. The aim is to bring new ‘attention’ to the brand at both trade and consumer levels (#mrdaypertutti – #mrdayforeveryone).

Project: We started from a sure base – “make it simple”, language for youngsters. We had to find an idea that was unattainable and unrepeatable by anyone else. Certainly not easy but having a precise aim is already a good starting point.

Then we also had another fundamental point – the colour orange. It had to become a feature element. A colour that was so strong that it was more than visible on the shelves; more than just unique, it had to be unmatchable. So we started work, attentively studying the new generation’s language; trying to interpret their desire to play yet, at the same time, find someone they could trust, with their parents’ approval. The result is the creation of a one-line character with a strong personality involving the whole package. An all-seeing eye looks out from the logo while the mouth changes position according to how enjoyable chomping a muffin or doughnut is.

The final effect is an impressive shelf presence, a strong range system and a clear, obvious variant distinction that easily enables the favourite product to be found. By no means lastly, the obviously appetising appearance of the professionally shot products, positioned to show all their goodness.

Font, colours and images were created to recall attentively the gaming world. Various augmented reality initiatives, on-line competitions, games and much more still to arrive arose from this. The packaging was designed to be ‘Instagrammable’, i.e. able to be easily integrated into Instagram stories and TikTok reels and so become part of the daily life of the generation which uses these tools the most.

The final touch was the creation of the whole wheat variant which started as a Mrs Day, given the character of the product which is more appealing to a female target.