• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer @mahoney_sarah, Yesterday

After 40 years of organic growth, FatBoy is going loud. The No. 1-selling ice cream sandwich in the U.S. is rolling out its first national ad campaign, new flavors, and a winking message that reminds consumers what it is—and what it’s definitely not.  Owned by Casper’s Ice Cream and based in Richmond. Utah, the company is looking to build sales within the $7 billion frozen novelties business and take on the snacking kingdom, with offbeat messaging from TDA Boulder, its ad agency. Russell Stokes, who joined the company as CEO last summer, tells CPG Insider how he hopes the new campaign will put FatBoy in more freezers.

Interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Marketing Daily: This is FatBoy’s first national campaign. What was the problem you were trying to solve with it?

Russell Stokes: What’s interesting is that FatBoy is America’s No. 1 ice cream sandwich, which is surprising to people, because we got there quietly—no paid media at all—just great product, growing organically over 40 years. The insight behind this campaign is that we’re already No. 1, but with very low awareness. It’s time to get a lot louder and broaden that awareness. That’s what this campaign is for.

Marketing Daily: You’re running these ads in CTV, digital and print, plus a social push on Meta. You’ve worked in big CPG companies with big budgets, including Kind, which is owned by Mars. How did you think through spend here?

Stokes: It was an adjustment for me, coming from Kind and confectionery brands, where we had big ad budgets. I started with the same question you just asked: When introducing a brand nationally, how much do we have to spend to move the needle?

Marketing Daily: Ice cream is an emotional category—joyful, nostalgic, over-the-top. How did that factor into the campaign’s tone?

Stokes: That nostalgia was probably the most powerful insight shaping the campaign. People see the packaging and say, “I grew up eating this." There’s just this emotional connection to ice cream, more than in any category I’ve worked in. It’s joy in a bite. You can’t take yourself too seriously. The campaign taps into that. It’s funny and lighthearted. FatBoy knows what it is and isn’t.

Marketing Daily: The humor does land, especially the "I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up" spoof. But humor is risky. How did you walk that line?

Stokes: That was one of my biggest concerns. I’m not a marketer—I react as a viewer. And I didn’t want super-clever, agency award bait that might go over people’s heads. We don’t have the budget for that. It needed to be memorable and straightforward.

After we shot, I asked the agency lead, “Watch this a couple of times—tell me if this is smart but clear. Will people get it?” And he said, “This is good, honest copy. People will get it and find it funny.” That’s what we wanted.

Marketing Daily: Ice cream shoppers have gone wild for overengineered flavor bombs—cookie chunks, swirls, sprinkles. Yet your flagship is simple. Who’s the audience for plain vanilla?

Stokes: I don’t think it’s just plain. Our core product is a pure, thick, delicious vanilla sandwich, which people love. Our secret weapon is repeat rate after trial, which is the highest I've ever seen in any brand. We deliver on a simple promise.  

But we’re not staying stuck. With this campaign, we’re also launching four innovations. We asked ourselves, 'How do we stay true to FatBoy while expanding?’ We didn’t want to make a stick or cone like everyone else. We asked our guy Shane, Utah’s version of Willy Wonka, "How do you make a stick product that’s still a FatBoy?" He came back with the sandwich pop. It's literally a FatBoy sandwich on a stick, coated and dipped. Messy, fun, totally on brand.

Marketing Daily: And the churro and brownie sandwiches?

Stokes: Those are going gangbusters. Churro is everywhere in out-of-home food, and the results so far have been off the charts. The biggest challenge is keeping up with demand. And Brownie is doing great, too. They’re indulgent, but clearly FatBoy.

Marketing Daily: So technically, these fall under "frozen novelties," right? How big is that category?

Stokes: Yeah—frozen novelties are the stick, cone, and sandwich side of the freezer aisle. It’s growing faster than the pints, at about 4%–5% dollar and unit growth, year-over-year. Half of our growth are people who are new to the category. That’s powerful. That means that, as we win, our retail partners win as well.

Marketing Daily: Is there an ice cream insight that you found really surprising?

Stokes: How many people eat ice cream in the first half of the day.