Singapore – Whether navigating a hybrid, virtual, or purely physical work set-up, attaining work-life balance will always be a challenge for employees. This is why beer brand Heineken, which can be considered a mainstay in workers’ happy hours, has launched a simple but true-to-point ad about the struggle of employees to be ‘present’ in their social lives. 

In collaboration with advertising agency Le Pub APAC, the beer brand’s 48-second clip titled ‘The Ghosted Bar’ shows a group of friends having a fun time at a bar. Shortly after, paranormal activities take place where glasses of beer move on their own as well as a chair – with no person on it – sliding from one place to another. Towards the end, it is revealed that the movements are indeed manoeuvres of their friend who is currently stuck at the office but is still present in spirit – as a ghost – amongst them. 

And as if the brief narrative couldn’t get more exciting, it is graced by Heineken ambassador, Korean actor Park Hyung Sik. In the end, the beer brand reminds to don’t ghost your friends and to work responsibly.

Prior to releasing the ad, Park Hyung Sik shared an Instagram video of the said spooky encounters which served as a teaser for the said campaign. It seemed to have piqued fans’ curiosity with it garnering more than 4 million views in 24 hours.

Bram Westenbrink, global head at Heineken Brand, said that Heineken has always encouraged socialisation and healthy human connections where workers have a balanced social and leisure time.

“We’re thrilled to bring this platform to Singapore and Malaysia as a reminder to leave your duties on time and not let your social life fall behind,” Westenbrink added.

Bruno Bertelli, global CEO of Le Pub, added, “Heineken’s Ghosted Bar campaign reminds us to leave the office after an honest day at work to live your social life at its fullest. This is what #WorkResponsibly is all about.”

Park Hyung Sik also expressed his thoughts, saying that employees must enjoy social life and not let work impede their leisure time.

“Through this meaningful project by Heineken, we want to encourage employees to start working responsibly,” said the Korean actor.

‘The Ghosted Bar’ is, in fact, partially attributed to findings by a YouGov study which revealed that almost half of the employees in Singapore and Malaysia are guilty of ‘ghosting’ their friends. 

This latest campaign by the brand is the third ad released under its #WorkResponsibly campaign. It follows the launch of The Closer and The Office Cleaners which were both unveiled in 2022.

Singapore After inaugurating its APAC headquarters in Singapore last year, advertising agency Le Pub appointed Hanh Kanssen as its general manager and Cyril Louis as its executive creative director.

Kanssen brings with her experience in connecting brands and consumers. She has worked with brands from Asia, Europe, and North America where she helped in driving their significant growth. 

Meanwhile, Louis brings expertise in designing products, crafting brands and businesses, creating physical and digital experiences and developing humanitarian initiatives. In his last stint, he was with creative company Elephant as global group creative director.

Amrita Randhawa, chief executive officer at Publicis Groupe Singapore and Southeast Asia, said that with Kanssen’s expertise in several Asian markets and latest cultural trends, combined with Louis’ creative hybrid and passion for technology, they will bring something special to the agency.

Kanssen commented that joining Le Pub is extremely refreshing and exciting, given that the agency helps to build brands in culture.

“Personally, I feel very proud of the world-class creative talent we have on the team, all handpicked to focus on building the next generation of brands that have a strong presence at the table of culture,” she added.

Earlier this year, Le Pub crafted a campaign for beer brand Tiger Beer as part of the lunar new year celebration.

Singapore – For the Lunar New Year celebration, beer brand Tiger Beer, together with Le Pub APAC, has launched an interesting campaign that is somehow an antithesis of its own brand messaging—but also not quite. Called ‘A Bolder Tomorrow’, it involved passersby stopping and being ‘frozen’ in their tracks. 

In order to convey its message to learn to celebrate the ‘now’, a normal day at Tanjong Pagar in downtown Singapore was disrupted when young professionals who are busy as they can be, suddenly froze en masse. What seems like a deviation from its communication of always being bold is indeed a support for such courageous character – being brave to stop endlessly chasing the next big win. 

Sean O’Donnell, global brand director of Tiger Beer, said that while the brand believes that we all have a ‘Tiger’ inside of us, they understand that sometimes the more we achieve, the further we’re expected to go. 

“This inspired last week’s stunt: by freezing hundreds of people in their tracks in one of Southeast Asia’s busiest downtown areas,” said O’Donnell. 

A report was, in fact, commissioned by the brand in order to understand better the challenging chapters in the lives of Gen Z and Millennials. The research, carried out by YouGov, showed that 90% of Gen Z and Millennial Southeast Asians admit to putting pressure on themselves, with more than half – 58% – feeling pressured to live up to an ‘impossible standard’. Surprisingly, the study also revealed that social media is a factor in such feelings of anxiety. 

On the study, O’Donnell said, “As a brand that encourages everyone to pursue their passions fearlessly, we wanted to understand why young adults in Asia are putting an unprecedented amount of pressure on themselves. We were shocked to discover that many people aren’t stopping to celebrate life’s small wins, which inspired ‘A Bolder Tomorrow’” 

Aside from the stunt, the campaign comes with a film to launch the message globally. Directed by Felipe Mansur of Alice Filmes, the film tackles people who are strongly focused on their pursuit of tomorrow and run straight past crucial moments in their life – such as graduations, victories, dream jobs, promotions and accolades.

Cyril Louis, APAC Executive Creative Director of Le Pub, added, “People spend the year restlessly chasing a better future. But during the festive season, afraid of the judgement of their wider family, they end up building more generic versions of themselves instead of being proud of and sharing their accomplishments and future dreams. By stopping people in their tracks, Tiger Beer is reminding everyone to come together to celebrate their achievements and talk openly about their dreams this year.”

New York, USA – In a bid to promote work balance while enjoying a cold bottle of beer when winding down, beer brand Heineken has launched a global campaign dedicated to the launch of ‘The Close’, a bottle opener that is programmed to shut down all work applications when used.

The new product is then dramatised in this satirical ad, where it depicts several workers caught up in their work and then wanting to drink a bottle of beer, shutting down their workspaces, including their electronics and other equipment. The ad is the antidote to the increasing demands of the always-on work culture, and ‘The Closer bottle’ opener itself is a satirical symbol for the power every worker has to close down at the end of the day.

The campaign, alongside the product launch, was conceptualised by Publicis Italy/Le Pub.

Bram Westenbrink, global head of Heineken® Brand at Heineken, said, “As a brand, we have always stood for creating moments of shared connections with others. With the once-rigid boundaries between work and personal time rapidly deteriorating following the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to spark a much-needed conversation about the importance of resisting the societal pressures to be in a constant state of busy work and encourage workers around the world to reprioritize social and leisure time with the people who matter most.”

Meanwhile, Bruno Bertelli, global chief creative officer at Publicis Worldwide, commented, “As people continue to feel like they have to work all the time, they’re forgetting that disconnecting is even an option. That’s why we created The Closer. It’s not just technology; it’s a social provocation to help people see that the pressure to work all the time is getting a little ridiculous and we all have the power to log off and go hang out with our friends again.”

This is the first campaign from Heineken that launches ‘For a Fresher World’, a new creative expression that aims to refresh the world by showing life tastes better with an open mind. With this new approach, campaigns will strive to challenge the obvious, reconsider stereotypes and oppose tired cliches.