AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS — This International Beer Day, Heineken® has created an emotive ad with an unexpected message: that you can forget about the beer; instead, the brewer wants you to focus on having a good time together.
“Want to grab a beer? ¿Te apetece una cerveza? On va boire une bière?” – recognized the world over as a ”catch all phrase” for getting together, Heineken® doesn’t mind if in the end you forget about the beer; as long as you are prioritising socializing.
With sociability at Heineken®’s core, celebrating these moments is more important to the brand than the beer itself; after all, Freddy Heineken himself said: “I don’t sell beer, I sell gezelligheid” (a famous Dutch phrase meaning ‘the feeling of good times’).
To bring this brand purpose to life, the iconic brewer has created an advert, going live today on International Beer Day; that showcases how ‘forgotten beers’ on the periphery of parties, football matches celebrations or get togethers in bars, demonstrate that good times are being had. Soundtracked to Debussy’s Claire de Lune, the powerful ad shows that the best part of having a beer isn’t actually the beer itself.
With factors like digital overload and longer working hours increasingly affecting our social lives, making sure we come together for good times is now more important than ever. A recent study[1] found nearly a quarter (24%) of the global population feels “very” or “fairly” lonely, while 6% do not feel connected “at all” to others, equating to about one in every 20 people worldwide.
Heineken® has a rich history of tackling the enemies of socialization. Earlier this year, the brand launched ‘The Boring Phone’, with no access to the internet, social media, or other apps, to help people discover there is more to their social life when there is less on their phone, as research revealed 90% of people admit to habitually scrolling on nights out.
While back in 2022, the brewer created ‘The Closer’, a high-tech bottle opener that used technology to close your work apps the moment you pop the lid off a Heineken®.
Even for its 150th anniversary, which some may have expected to be around heritage, Heineken® created a global campaign that shows how the brand doesn’t care how consumers drink, name or spell it, as long as they are having a good time with it, one way or another. It also saw the creation of the ‘Good Times Index’, which looks at the conditions that consumers need to experience that feeling of good times.
So, for International Beer Day, Heineken®’s sentiment to good times remains just the same – way ahead of the beer itself.
Dolf van den Brink, CEO of HEINEKEN, said “On International Beer Day, we truly get to show what the Heineken® brand stands for – good times together! Of course, we celebrate our beer but what we’re most proud of is 150 years of bringing people together, something that will remain at our core for as long as we continue to produce beer. Cheers!”
Willem van Waesberghe, Master Brewer at Heineken® adds: “As Master Brewer, I am the first person to call out the amazing taste and quality of our beer. But today isn’t about that – it’s about the special moments surrounding our drinking experiences. Happy International Beer Day!”
The full ad for International Beer Day is ideated by creative agency LePub.
“International Beer Day brings the world together, celebrating the beers of all cultures on one remarkable day. This occasion was perfect for Heineken to show once again the brands’ always-unique point of view. In fact, the campaign is an ode to good times and happiness all portrayed through the lenses of those ‘forgotten’ beers that are left behind to give space to the deliciousness of togetherness, quality socializing and friendly moments,” said Bruno Bertelli, Global CEO LePub, CCO Publicis Worldwide.
Sr. Director Global Heineken Brand: Nabil Nasser
Global Communications & Strategy Director: Daniela Iebba
Global Communications Manager: Alexander Drake
Global Digital Director: Rob van Griensven
Global Digital Manager: Bob Van Iersel
Global PR Lead: Jonathan O’Lone
LePub
Global CEO LePub, CCO Publicis Worldwide: Bruno Bertelli
Global Chief Creative Officer: Cristiana Boccassini
Chief Creative Officer: Mihnea Gheorghiu
Chief Creative Officer LePub Brazil: Felipe Cury
Executive Creative Director: Eoin Sherry
Executive Creative Director LePub Brazil: Greg Kickow
Head of Art: Andrea Ferlauto
Creative Director: Marie Poumeyrol
Creative Director LePub Brazil: Yan Prado
Associate Creative Director: Alessandro Agnellini
Associate Creative Director: Fernando Dominguez
Senior Copywriter: Katharina Haller
Senior Art Director: Joao Araujo
Copywriter: Zelda Ridgway
Art Director: Alice Berlande
Chief Strategy Officer: Sol Ghafoor
Senior Strategic Planner: Alex Moore
Global Head of PR & Communication: Isabella Cecconi
Senior Digital PR Manager: Federica Fiorentino
Social Strategy Director: Vanessa Satta
Social Lead: Tatiana Katsai
Global Client Service Director: Shirine Aoun
Global Client Service Director: Ilaria Castiglioni
Group Account Director:Madalina Marica
Account Supervisor: Tinatin Prangishvili
Chief Production Officer: Francesca Zazzera
Head of TV Production: Anna Sica
Producer: Martina Mozzillo
Art Buyer: Caterina Collesano
Production and Print Managers: Daniela Inglieri, Tina Paolella
Photo Production & Post Production: Section 80
Photographer: Lou Escobar
Film production
Production Company: TEMPOMEDIA
Director: ALEX FEIL
DOP: PAUL GUILHAUME
Executive Producer: VERA PORTZ
Producer: GUNNAR MEYER
Film post production
Editors: IAIN WHITEWRIGHT, FABRIZIO SQUEO
Color: Matthieu Toullet
Post Production: GABHA STUDIOS, PRODIGIOUS
Sound studio: DISC2DISC, MILANO
MUSIC
Music Agency: Sizzer
Music Supervisor: Richard Aardenburg
Music Producer: Mees Van Der Velde
Executive Creative Director: Michiel Marsman
Executive Music Supervisor: Sander van Maarschalkerweerd
Dentsu
Global Client Director: Kate Hinz
Global Strategy Director: Elio LaGrua
EDELMAN
Senior Director: Suzy Socker
Associate Director: Harry Zelenka Martin
Account Director: Saskia Butler-Tempest
Project Manager: Priscilla McIntosh
Account Manager: Charlotte Nash
Associate Account Executive: Carien Vanrietschoten
Publicis Media – meme creators content
Content lead – Marco Sorrentino
Content Director – Silvia Beretta
Content Specialist – Giuseppe Santoro
Content Executive – Alessandro Fici
BDB (Billion Dollar Boy)
Group Account Director – Sami Westwood
Account Director – James Silverstone
Account Manager – Taylah Lowe-Allen
Creative Director – Alex Williamson
Senior Creative – Brooke Clark
Boomerang – Part of Publicis Groupe
Chief Creative Officer – Rico de Lange
Creative Director – William Reed
Senior Creative – Rui Huppe
Junior Creatives – Nynke Driessen, Jerome Hompes
Post Producer – Lina Joukhadar
Community Manager – Jesus Sanz
Senior Digital Project Manager – Jeanne Laval
Account Executive – Natalia Cortes
