Reel Ad of the Week

International Delight uses hidden camera to prove people hate plain coffee

By Reel Chicago
July 7, 2025

This week’s Reel Ad of the Week is anything but plain — and that’s exactly the point. International Delight, with creative agency FCB Chicago, just dropped a brilliantly executed campaign that doesn’t tiptoe around its message. It sprints headfirst into it with the kind of gusto we love to see.

“We Hate Plain Coffee, Too” is more than a headline. It’s a manifesto, a cultural callout, and a caffeinated clapback to every sad, flavorless cup out there. And the way they unveiled it? Pure genius.

The brand set up a hidden-camera pop-up café offering free coffee… with one cruel twist: no creamer, no foam, no flavor. The reactions from unsuspecting customers were as bitter as the brew, and exactly what International Delight wanted to capture. What starts as a low-key prank transforms into a high-impact brand truth: people don’t actually love coffee, they love what creamer makes coffee taste like.

“Creamer lovers believe that plain coffee sucks, and we couldn’t agree more,” said Olivia Sanchez, senior vice president of creamers for Danone North America. “Creamer fans, or as we know them, Creamer Nation, not only reach for International Delight to add delicious flavour to their cup of coffee, but they choose International Delight because we bring joy to every cup through our flavours like French Vanilla, Caramel Macchiato, or even Hot Chocolate Marshmallow from the nostalgic holiday classic Home Alone. Without creamer, ‘coffee lovers’ don’t exist.” Watch below:

It’s a rare campaign that feels this fresh, this funny, and this true. From the unbranded “Simply Coffee Café” stunt to the sharp writing and campaign rollout, the work delivers a crystal-clear insight with punchy humor and cultural relevance. The stats back it up too, 79 percent of Gen Z coffee drinkers now prefer creamed coffee. International Delight is not chasing a trend. They are the trend.

This FCB campaign gets everything right: the insight, the setup, the humor, and most importantly, the voice. It’s bold without being abrasive, quirky without being try-hard, and delivers a clear brand promise in a way you can’t ignore.

In an industry full of safe bets and sleepy storytelling, International Delight and FCB Chicago have brewed up something fearless. That’s why We Hate Plain Coffee, Too is our Reel Ad of the Week.

Point made. Drink it in.

CREDITS:

BRAND: Danone

AGENCY: FCB Chicago