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With the cost-of-living crisis leaving many Brits stressed, U.K. toilet paper brand Cushelle is encouraging them to embrace a bit of selfishness and treat themselves to luxurious “me time”—on the toilet.
The “Selfishly Soft” ad, from agency Publicis London and BAFTA-nominated director Jim Archer, shows people taking time for themselves on the toilet and engaging in activities that typically don’t take place there.
The characters are joined by Cushelle’s mascot, Kenny the Koala, who has his first speaking role in this ad. Kenny explains that the children’s party magician, woman watching reality TV and businessman skipping out on a presentation are all treating themselves with a roll of new Cushelle Quilted.
Publicis London has worked with Cushelle’s parent company, Essity, for 15 years, but this is the first time they’ve had Kenny speak in an ad. According to Cushelle’s data, 82% of shoppers are aware of the koala, but the agency saw an opportunity for the character to evolve.
“As we were encouraging people to be more selfish, we saw Kenny as the turning point—his role could be giving you permission to put yourself first for once. To do that, he needed a voice,” Publicis London chief creative officer Noel Bunting told ADWEEK.
The concept for the ad was inspired by data showing that during the cost-of-living crisis, British people felt that all their efforts were going to other people. Advocating for a different approach also allowed Cushelle to stand out in the category, Bunting explained.
“The only time they were getting to themselves was on the toilet. Competitors were even telling them to buy their toilet paper for the good of others (buy it for your family, buy it for the planet, buy it to save your family money),” Bunting said. “But we know that when we face turmoil, a little luxury for ourselves becomes more important than ever, so we positioned buying Cushelle premium toilet paper to claim back a little luxury for yourself.”
The goal of the campaign is to convince lapsed buyers to justify a premium toilet paper purchase.
The hero spot and shorter edits will run across TV, video-on-demand and social through Sept. 15.
