The campaign, entitled 'There', is intended to move Smirnoff closer to social activity and moments when an individual can say 'I was there'. Its parent, Diageo, plans to back the strategy with a marketing spend of £15m in the UK alone.
The first TV ad, by JWT New York, breaks on 8 July. It shows a group of people dressing in outlandish costumes for an overnight party in a forest. It will be backed by outdoor ads, experiential activity and in-store promotions.
Diageo is also placing greater emphasis on digital marketing for the brand, with content to be streamed through its website, and additional activity on social networking and media sites. Diageo appointed Agency Republic last year to handle its digital advertising.
In 2007, Diageo invested in its first Smirnoff-branded music and entertainment venue, as part of its 'Smirnoff Original Nights' campaign.
Earlier this year, rival First Drinks-owned brand Russian Standard Vodka, which has the second-biggest adspend in the UK vodka market behind Smirnoff, kicked off the search for a branding agency to lead a packaging overhaul.
Smirnoff
- 1860s Founded at a Moscow vodka distillery
- 1920s The Smirnoff family fled Russia following the October Revolution, first to Istanbul, then Poland
- 1925 Distillery founded in Paris
- 1933 Production began under licence in the US
- 1994 Smirnoff Mule UK launch
- 1999 Smirnoff Ice UK launch
- 2007 Launched 'Sea' ad campaign
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