Background
Guinness was universally admired for its
advertising, which tended to be Black and White,
Epic and Sombre. This was a brand with stature
and an advertising message that went with it.
And it delivered brilliantly for the business for
12 years.
There was only one problem: with an ageing
audience, this approach worked a treat. But there
was a new generation of drinker emerging that
were not responding to the communications
with the same intensity.

Challenge
We needed to create a new brand platform with
vibrancy and energy that could wrong-foot,
surprise and delight a new generation of Guinness
drinker that is broad enough to appeal to any
market worldwide.

Strategy
The strategy draws a parallel between the
drinker and the drink by championing strength
of character and celebrating bold choices.

Idea
Our creative idea can be distilled down to three
simple words: Made of More. In Western Europe,
this led us to tell the story of the ‘Sapeurs’.
The Sapeurs are a group of men, who wear
incredible clothing in stark contrast to their
surroundings and embody the universal truth
that in life, we all have a choice. We can let
circumstance define us, or we can defy it.
In Africa, it led us to Made of Black, a remarkable
participative campaign that both celebrated and
fuelled the aspirations of a continent. For rugby,
we created content stories that demonstrate the
bold characteristics of some of rugby’s greatest
heroes such as Jonny Wilkinson, Bill Mclaren and
Shane Williams.