Hong Kong – For the first time in its 137-year history, Hong Kong-based Lee Kum Kee has launched a global brand campaign, celebrating the universal power of togetherness, tradition, and shared culinary experiences that transcend borders and generations.

In collaboration with DDB Group Hong Kong, Lee Kum Kee’s global campaign seeks to strengthen its connection with an expanding international customer base while attracting new audiences worldwide.

Titled ‘FLAVORS THAT BIND,’ the campaign pays tribute to the brand’s cultural significance, emphasising its role in bringing people together—not just around the table, but across generations and continents—through its diverse range of Chinese and Asian sauces and seasonings.

Lee Kum Kee launched its campaign during Lunar New Year, a time of global gatherings over traditional dishes, to celebrate Asian culture and values. The campaign film highlights how meals with Lee Kum Kee sauces foster deeper connections through shared traditions and heritage.

The brand film is supported by Lee Kum Kee’s largest media investment to date, featuring prominent placements on digital billboards in New York’s Times Square, London’s Outernet, Shanghai No.1 Department Store, and Hong Kong International Airport, along with extensive online and social media coverage.

Additionally, Lee Kum Kee has also partnered with FleishmanHillard offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, London, and New York for global PR; Cedar HK for content management; and Havas Hong Kong for media to ensure the campaign resonates with a worldwide audience.

Doreen Cheng, chief marketing officer at Lee Kum Kee Sauce, said, “With the launch of our new brand campaign, Lee Kum Kee celebrates its evolution as a global gateway to Asian culinary culture, representing the diversity, richness, and expressivity of Asian flavours on a global stage.” 

“For us, ‘global’ is not restricted to geography—it’s an attitude of authentic inclusiveness, where the flavours, traditions, and togetherness we celebrate resonate universally; this spirit is at the heart of our campaign. Through the brand film, we aim to preserve our heritage while inspiring chefs and food lovers to connect with Asian cuisine in meaningful ways,” Cheng added. 

Adrian Ts’o, chief strategy officer at DDB Group Hong Kong, also shared, “It’s not every day you get the brief to take a homegrown Hong Kong brand to the world. This is exactly the kind of work we aspire to do more of. Our city and region have so much to offer, and it’s an exciting new era for Lee Kum Kee. We look forward to showcasing this phenomenal brand to audiences across the globe.”

Hong Kong – Local health and beauty chain Mannings has launched a new campaign alongside DDB Group Hong Kong promoting its wide range of products and professional health services, to help Hong Kongers sleep better. Said campaign focuses on the fact that sleep quality is a major issue in Hong Kong, ranking among the top 3 health concerns of Hong Kong people.

The ‘Take Sleep Seriously campaign,’ as well as raising awareness of the importance of sleep, demonstrates Mannings’ dedication to improving Hong Kongers’ sleep quality with specialty products and tips, through an online video. The video showcases a variety of ways and means people can ensure a better night’s sleep and features a reworked version of Brahm’s lullaby, with specially written lyrics. 

In the campaign, the Mannings Cat sweetly sings along as it kindly inspires people to improve sleep quality in different ways. The video concludes with the lullaby slowing, as people gently fall asleep with the help of Mannings products.

For Mannings, healthy sleep is essential for physical, mental and social wellbeing, and depth, duration, continuity and timing of sleep are all critical aspects for overall sleep quality. The good news is that Hong Kong people can turn to a variety of sleep remedies and Mannings boasts an extensive range of products that help reduce stress and enhance sleep quality. 

These include health supplements rich in key ingredients such as melatonin, GABA, and herbal extracts, and skincare, hair care and bathing products infused with relaxing fragrances and able to be incorporated into a self-care routine in support of optimising sleep. Expert advice on product usage, as well as healthy sleep habits, are also all part of the services at Mannings.

Kayley Hui, marketing director of health and beauty for Hong Kong, Macau & China at DFI Retail Group, said, “Our ‘Take Sleep Seriously’ campaign aims to raise awareness about the importance of quality sleep for overall health and well-being. By offering products and services that enhance sleep and relaxation, we hope to encourage our customers to prioritize sleep and make informed choices for a healthier lifestyle.”

Meanwhile, Frankie Fung, chief creative officer at DDB Group Hong Kong, commented, “We’re thrilled to partner with Mannings on their ‘Take Sleep Seriously’ campaign, which addresses a significant health concern in Hong Kong. Our collaboration allowed us to create an engaging thematic video that captures the importance of quality sleep, featuring a unique twist on the iconic Brahms’ lullaby. We hope this campaign inspires Hong Kongers to invest in some sleep self-care, and not only have one less health concern, but also experience all the many benefits of regularly getting a good night’s sleep.”

The campaign will run online, across social media, outdoor and in-store for the month of October.

Hong Kong – DDB Group Hong Kong has acquired the creative and social media accounts for Tiger Brokers’ Tiger Trade trading platform. The agency will be in charge of all 2024 communications, including strategy and creative for branding, production, promotion, and social media. 

Building brand awareness and client acquisition in an established market of savvy investors is the brand’s main goal. DDB will have to help with increasing appeal, reaching a wider audience, and establishing brand presence. 

Tiger Trade’s low-commission real-time trading software provides investors with technology, knowledge, and inventiveness. The smartphone app is young and only getting started in the Hong Kong market, it already has over 2.2 million account holders worldwide. 

Speaking about the appointment, Lowe Low, Senior brand marketing manager at Tiger Brokers (HK) Global Limited, said, “DDB’s unparallelled creativity and strategic brilliance truly distinguished them in the pitch process and it is with immense excitement that we move forward with them. At Tiger Brokers, we believe in pushing boundaries and redefining possibilities, and with DDB by our side, I am confident that we will create ground-breaking campaigns that not only captivate our audience, but also redefine the landscape of our industry.”

Meanwhile, Koman Ko, managing partner at DDB Group Hong Kong, stated, “We immediately respected Tiger Brokers’ visionary approach and ambition, as well as their collaborative style of working. We can’t wait to get started and help bring Tiger Trade’s superior investment experiences to more Hong Kong people, helping them reach their full potential as investors.” 

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Bank has partnered with DDB Group Hong Kong for its latest anti-fraud campaign that uses Cantopop songs to help customers identify sophisticated financial scams. 

Developed by DDB Group Hong Kong, the campaign uses familiar Cantopop songs with reworked lyrics to provide consumers with helpful information on financial scams. The song lyrics contain information on different types of fraud, including how to identify scam calls, tests, online sellers, and social accounts. 

To ensure that the campaign also gains more traction, the song featured a lineup of artists such as Tonick, Per Se, Serrini, and Nancy Sit that can appeal to various demographics and cover the bank’s diverse customer base. 

While this is not the first time that Hang Seng Bank has featured Cantopop artists in their campaigns, this is the first time that the bank has been able to incorporate financial messages into the melodies. 

The campaign is Hang Seng Bank’s response to the increasing fraud cases in Hong Kong. The bank is investing their resources in ensuring that people have awareness of the various forms of fraud and that they understand the best prevention strategy to avoid becoming the next victim. 

The songs are accompanied by music videos and a live performance at ‘Hang Seng Bank Anti-Fraud Music Concert’. In partnership with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the free concert featured all the singers performing their anti-fraud song renditions to heighten public awareness of fraud prevention. 

Jordan Cheung, chief marketing officer at Hang Seng Bank, said, “Scams are a financial crime that can happen to anyone, and so we really want our customers to know what to look out for. At the same time, we understand cybersecurity is not something everyone is interested in. We hope creating easily digestible information in the form of well-loved Cantopop songs will be an effective way to get some important messages across to help protect our customers.”

Also speaking on the campaign, Koman Ko, managing partner at DDB Group Hong Kong, added, “We really enjoyed the challenge of decoding fraud information and creating more understandable messages in the form of catchy lyrics. We hope the outcome is entertaining and, most importantly, arms customers with information to protect themselves from being scammed.”

Hong Kong – McDonald’s Hong Kong has ‘secretly’ partnered with creative agency DDB Group Hong Kong for the launch of its newest ‘#SNEAKJOY’ campaign that gives travellers a chance to enjoy the joy of sneaking.

The social campaign is largely based on the shared experiences of travellers who find some joy in sneaking their favourite food into unexpected places like aeroplanes.

Partnering up with Hong Kong International Airport, the first 1,000 people who show their boarding pass at the airport McDonald’s will receive a free apple pie that they can sneakily enjoy on the aeroplane.

As part of the special promotion, customers will have the opportunity to be rewarded with free Chicken McNuggets on their return to Hong Kong. They just have to share on social media their creative takes of their sneaky flight experience with the hashtag #SNEAKJOY and tag McDonald’s Hong Kong Instagram account.

The campaign will only run for three weeks, or until supplies last.

Tina Chao, chief marketing and digital customer experience officer at McDonald’s Hong Kong, said, “This campaign really celebrates the joy of having McDonald’s in unexpected places. Joy is a key value of our brand, and this is a playful way to showcase that we want to enable our customers to experience this emotion anytime and anywhere.”

Also speaking on the campaign, Andreas Krasser, CEO at DDB Group Hong Kong, commented, “This campaign is special because it taps into and amplifies an existing behaviour; it was of sorts already co-created with customers. We hope it will bring a lot of joy, as well as entertainment, to even more people along the way.”

Hong Kong – Advertising agency DDB Group Hong Kong has named Izmael Crespo as its new creative director to bolster the agency’s creative firepower.

In his new role, Crespo will work on multi-market projects across DDB’s varied client base. He will report to Alejandro Canciobello, the regional executive creative director.

Crespo is an art-based creative director who has worked with major brands on projects across the globe. His experience brings not only talent and fame but also a multicultural perspective to his new role with DDB Group Hong Kong.

He moved to Hong Kong from Colombia this month and comes into the agency with an extensive list of major accolades to his name, not least of which include an impressive ten Lions. Crespo is notably a part of the team responsible for the Corona Lime campaign that gave China its first-ever Titanium Lion win.

Additionally, being a gaming streamer himself, he is known for creating campaigns that bring brands to gaming environments.

Crespo’s appointment is the second major hire in DDB Group Hong Kong’s creative department this year. He follows the appointment of Alejandro Canciobello last April, to whom he will report directly now.

These hires underscore the agency’s ambition and commitment to significantly elevate its creative offering and the hope of becoming world-class. This is a goal that Andreas Krasser, CEO of DDB Group Hong Kong, has publicly voiced.

Commenting on the new hire, Alejandro Canciobello said, “Recently winning HKMA’s Agency of the Year for the second year in a row, having won Hong Kong’s 2023 Grand Effie, and with a string of notable creative campaigns this year, the agency has some great momentum. Adding someone like Izmael and his immense passion to create campaigns with the power to move people and culture is going to help us propel forward in our pursuit for even better work and greater impact.”

Also in his new role, Crespo shared, “I’m a big believer in an agency environment where everyone has the freedom to express their own creative voice and inspires each other to roll up their sleeves, and I know DDB has created this culture. I am excited to be here in Hong Kong and feel especially excited about going into an agency that is emerging on the global stage. I can’t wait to play a role in the next chapter of that story.”