Plot Twist Creativity doubles down on so many mouth-watering superlatives for Central Market’s holiday campaign that it makes you want hurry to shop there because they have the best of the best for the holidays.
AdChat DFW’s Patty Harrison chatted with Dave Kroencke, Principal at Plot Twist Creativity and Jeff Barfoot, Partner and Chief Creative Director, with Trace Element, about this year’s holiday campaign.
Patty: Tell us about this campaign.
Dave: In essence, for many retailers and grocery stores, the holidays are a huge time of the year. Business is strong and people are shopping for big family gatherings, parties and that kind of thing.
Patty: They’re dropping the bucks.
Dave: Definitely. Central Market truly enjoys this time of year because it’s a wonderful and special place. Which then puts pressure on us to make sure the creative campaign is just as special and that it reflects the store experience.
Patty: What did you do differently for this year?
Dave: This year we leaned into the idea that while it’s a wonderful time of year for society in general, it’s really the best time of year at Central Market, because during this season they have the largest variety of foods for every type of palate and taste. We took that strategic insight and then turned it into an amusing campaign idea using all kinds of superlatives; it’s the cheesiest, the meatiest…I can’t even say all of them…we just added the “est” to a lot of fun “taste” words to represent their products and flavors and then matched them to beautiful imagery. It’s just charming and clever.
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Patty: Was the creative team the same one for the Thanksgiving campaign for Central Market?
Dave: Yes, it’s the same writing team, Chris Smith, Wendy Mayes and Rachel Dawer along with the design team at Trace Element including Jeff Barfoot. (See details below) I want to give all the credit to the team, they did a wonderful job.
Patty: There are many delectable visuals created by Trace Element.
Dave: They really stepped up to the plate, so to speak, to bring the tasty visuals to life.
Patty: Jeff, how did address the need for a yummy design?
Jeff: The Central Market Holiday event is always one of my favorites. The challenge for us is to strike just the right balance between something fresh and new, and something with some nostalgic charm. This year’s creative does that really well. The designer/illustrator team came up with a look that used scale and whimsy to create a fun campaign. I love the little Easter eggs (Holiday eggs??) peppered in it for people who take an extra moment, like a cow wearing a scarf or a little dude with a flamethrower roasting the giant ham!
Patty: And who was on this luscious design team?
Jeff: Our team was Anna Mertz, Dana Nixon, Cristina Moore, and Yvette Sierra (Cristina and Yvette were also the fabulous illustrators).
Patty: We love this campaign and are always looking for the next iteration which always succeeds at bringing a new twist.
