• by Larissa Faw , September 14, 2020

Groupe Lactalis launched a social media campaign earlier this month to support its Président cheese brand in the U.S. that was based on an idea from agency Solve’s work-from-home summer internship team. The project featured 20 “foodies” who were surprised to receive cheese-filled kits to help them cope with the fact they were unable to fly to Europe to enjoy these treats in person.

All of these hand-selected Americans complained via social media about their inability to enjoy cheese overseas this summer.

The interns were responsible for the development and creation of the “President Cheese Flight” package, which includes a variety of Président cheeses, including Brie, feta and goat varieties along with local European accoutrements for pairing, like one tin of premium Peregrino Spanish olives and a sleeve of French macaroons.

The kits also come with cheese knives and a subscription to a language learning app for recipients to “polish up on the native tongue of their choice” as well as a stamped “passport” which includes various European-inspired recipes from the brand.

The brand also decided to shift away from basic influencers to instead partner with international flight attendants to personally distribute and document on social media the distribution of these kits.

“With the pandemic grounding many travel plans, food has really become a passport of sorts this summer. We’ve all seen brands reaching out with gift boxes, but channeling our European expertise into a foodie trip replacement kit felt like an uplifting way to surprise consumers in an upside-down time,” said Ryan Murray, Solve Director of Account Management/Partner.

To broaden the reach of the messaging beyond these lucky 20 fans and their followers, the brand is encouraging people via its website PresidentCheese.com to nab a digital version of the kit. This component provides “inspiration” in the form of recipes, downloadable European Zoom backdrops and tips from the campaign’s flight attendants. But fans must head to the store to purchase the real deal.

The agency’s interns worked with staffers to transform the idea into a full-fledged working campaign. The key inspiration came from the agency’s ongoing social media strategy called Key Moments.

“We strive to stay top-of-mind with our foodie target who are typically entertainers/hosts turning to social media in advance of holiday weekends for inspiration and expertise,” explains Murray. “With Labor Day being one of the busiest travel holidays of the summer season, we had observed many in our target grounded and therefore attempted to provide them with a fun and interesting twist on our European expertise.”