Monoprix Is Celebrating 85 Years With An Unprecedented Campaign

May. 11, 2017

To celebrate its 85 years, French retailer Monoprix is reaffirming its status as an iconic brand and is launching a historic communication campaign. For 85 years, Monoprix has been at the heart of cities throughout France, has made quality food, household items and clothing affordable, has innovated and surprised its customers. For 85 years, Monoprix has been a part of French daily life.  

But Monoprix’s anniversary is not so much about its history; it’s about a relationship, that between the brand and its customers. An ongoing kinship, an emotional bond, a daily dialogue, all symbolized by the brand’s packaging. For years, the retailer’s generic products have gained attention for their creative packaging – in big, block letters set against a mono-color background, each product’s name is given through a play on words. The pop art-inspired packaging is so iconic in France that in 2016, Monoprix and agency Rosapark created a sticker app, Monojis, that was downloaded over 25,000 times in its first month. For nearly a week, it was even the most popular download in stickers category the French Apple store, beating out Mario.

To celebrate its anniversary, Monoprix and its agency Rosapark wanted to mark the occasion by creating a striking cinematic story.

The result, an emotional film which, uncut, lasts 4 minutes, follows a young boy and girl whose destinies cross paths thanks to the words found on the iconic Monoprix packaging.

By putting its emblematic packaging at the center of the story, Monoprix is symoblizing the role it has played across France’s metropolises for the last 85 years: « At the heart of your life, at the heart of your city. »

Shot with 35mm film, “Label of Love” was directed by British duo Thirty Two, whose documentaries have gained international attention (Shut Up and Play the Hits – LCD Soundystem, No Distance Left to Run – Blur). The music, “Thirteen” by the group Big Star, was named one of the 500 greatest songs of all time by Rolling Stone.

The epic film went live online and started running on TV on May 10^th. In less than 24 hours it has already been viewed 1.75 million times online. 

But Monoprix isn’t stopping there – on May 22^nd, the brand is releasing additional conclusions to the heart-warming story. In all “Label of Love” will feature 13 different endings.

The ground-breaking film will be accompanied by the massive deployment of an in-store activation campaign: for 2 weeks, customers purchasing a selection of Monoprix products have the opportunity to win monumental prizes: a week in Japan, a bungee jump, a wedding ring, music festival tickets, and more.

The orchestration of the campaign’s media and influencers was managed by media agency Blue 449. In addition to the 4-minute film, which runs online, on TV and in theaters May 10-21, the campaign includes outdoor posters in bus shelters, the metro and on buses.

The brand is also using social media to feature a selection of its most talked about packs from throughout the years.