Minus 196 pops up with The Chiller Room on Clapham Common
Posted by
Suntory vodka soda brand Minus 196 has launched The Chiller Room, a temperature-controlled pop-up bar on Clapham Common designed to offer Londoners an ice-cold escape from the summer heat.
Created by The Zeal Group, the activation brought together Zeal Creative and Joe Public on creative and campaign development, Joe Public on PR and amplification, and Zeal X on production and experiential delivery.
The Chiller Room forms part of Minus 196’s wider strategy to build awareness among UK 18 to 34-year-olds through experiences that drive conversation and trial.
The idea was inspired by new research commissioned by Minus 196, which found that Britain is a nation of cold-weather converts. In a poll of 2,000 adults, 52% said they would choose to be permanently chilly rather than hot, citing better sleep, a dislike of feeling sweaty and increased irritability during warmer weather.
The research was translated into a simple real-world proposition: if Britain would rather be cold, give people somewhere to escape the heat.
Working with a specialist vehicle supplier, the team transformed a demountable glass-box trailer into a mobile Minus 196 Chiller Bar. Framed by ice-inspired graphics, fruit and product imagery, the transparent space invited visitors to step inside, cool down and experience the brand in conditions designed for ice-cold refreshment.
Launched on 30 July and timed to coincide with high temperatures in London, the activation offered visitors the opportunity to sample Minus 196 in Peach, Lemon and Grapefruit while taking a break from the summer heat.
The activation drew on the brand’s distinctive product story and refreshment credentials. Minus 196 is made using Suntory’s Freeze Crush Technology, which freezes whole fruit at -196°C before crushing and infusing it with shochu, vodka and soda to capture its bold fruit flavour.
The Chiller Room is also one of the first projects Joe Public has delivered for an existing Zeal client since joining the Group, bringing Zeal’s creative, earned and experiential expertise together around a single idea.
Aoife McGuigan, Head of Category Expansion, said: “As Minus 196 builds its presence in the UK, our priority is to grow awareness and trial in a way that makes the brand instantly distinctive. We have taken a unique product truth and turned it into a timely, talkable experience that brings the brand to life in a way people can experience for themselves.”
Rob White, Co-Founder and Joint CEO of Zeal, said: “The strongest activations connect the brand idea, the experience and the earned story from the outset. The Chiller Room does exactly that, turning the brand’s core proposition into something people can experience and share. It also shows the advantage of bringing Zeal’s creative, PR and experiential expertise together around one clear idea.”
Ruth Kieran, Co-Founder and CEO of Joe Public, said: “This is Joe Public’s first consumer activation since joining the Zeal Group – and a great example of what we can do when PR, creative thinking and activation come together. Collectively we’ve taken the essence of what makes Minus 196 unique and turned it into something of the moment while also giving consumers a ‘cool’ experience where they can try the brand.”