Red Bee launches new Stowford Press campaign

Red Bee has released a new campaign – ‘The Wonderfulness of Local’ – for Westons Cider brand Stowford Press.

Red Bee were tasked with helping the brand stand out in a category crowded with images of summer apple orchards and happy friends at festivals. The aim is to increase both brand saliency and category reach, alongside helping support Westons’ ambitious volume targets for Stowford Press, across both the on-trade and off-trade.

The campaign consists of 60”, 30” and 10” TV commercials, as well as social media content. Designed to highlight the fact that Stowford Press only uses locally sourced apples, the work features comedian Ellie Taylor and renowned local adventurer Alastair Humphreys going off in search of adventures in the beautiful countryside that surrounds the Stowford Press mill in Herefordshire. Social media will feature cutdowns of the TVC, as well as a content series based on clips of Alastair Humphreys giving tips for local adventures anyone can go on.

Positioning Stowford Press as a quality ‘step up’ from mainstream ciders, the campaign targets 28-year-old+ male and female cider drinkers. Insight indicated this audience is united by an appreciation of quality ingredients, a good sense of humour and a taste for adventure – hence the creative execution.

Lisa Matchett, head of planning at Red Bee, comments: “When doing our research, we discovered that in order to produce the necessary volume, many ciders included imported apple concentrate (sometimes from as far away as China). Stowford Press don’t ever do this: all the apples in Stowford Press are locally sourced and come from within 50 miles of their cider mill. So, we found ourselves gifted with something very precious and all too rare: something true and different about our product to tell our audiences a good story about.”

Sally McKinnon, head of brands at Westons Cider adds: “We wanted to find an entertaining and engaging way to communicate the premium credentials of the Stowford Press brand and heavily differentiate it from its competitive-set – both creatively and strategically. Red Bee’s expertise in creating entertaining content was crucial to the creative execution and we’re excited to be releasing the results of that today.”