• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer @mahoney_sarah, August 16, 2024

Kraft Mac & Cheese, one of life’s ultimate comfort foods, has used many metaphors to explain the warm, fuzzy feeling that comes from the one-pot wonder. But the latest version of the campaign steps away from the couches and kitchens of the past, with new ads portraying a genuine bear hug. The main character sinks into a warm, lengthy embrace with a bruin before returning to his bowl of hot Mac & Cheese.

The spot is as weird as it is wonderful. Victoria Lee, brand communications manager, says that tone is deliberate, resulting from consumer research on the young adults the CPG giant sees as its primary growth audience.

“We knew we had an opportunity to sharpen our point of view on comfort and started to talk to Zillenials about what their life looks like right now,” she tells CPG Insider.

“There's a lot going on with them, post-pandemic, and we wanted to know what's keeping them up at night, what's driving them, and what role Kraft Mac & Cheese might play in their lives.”

Those lives are a little on the scary side. “They’re excited to be leaving home and starting their careers, but there are moments of uncertainty as they navigate these things.”

And while that may make them feel nostalgic for many brands, Kraft Mac & Cheese has some advantages. It’s not only a comfort food from their childhood. “For many, it was the first food they could make for themselves, and was a college dorm room staple,” Lee, says. “We’ve been with them throughout the journey, so it’s a deep connection.”

When one of the research participants described the product as “feeling like the hug that I need, but I’m not getting,” Kraft and the team at Johannes Leonardo, which created the campaign, decided to get literal.

The fairy-tale feel of the bear and the forest is meant to evoke those warm feelings. “We wanted to come up with ways that felt visually intriguing, something that would be thumb-stopping, a little irreverent for the brand,” Lee says. "When people think of us, they are probably thinking about warm fuzzies. We wanted to do that but in a fun and different way.”

In a second spot, a young woman sits eating Mac & Cheese on a couch, with fireworks going off all around her. “The idea is that there is just this personal firework show. It’s lovely. And while that isn’t something you’ve experienced personally -- just like you’ve never hugged a real bear -- you can imagine what that would feel like.”

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