Retailer Meijer’s hallmark hunger relief effort, Simply Give, campaign created by The Distillery Project (TDP) is set to break on November 16 and run through the rest of the year.
Every year, each Meijer store partners with a local food pantry to ensure that all donations generated remain within local communities. The Simply Give program runs year-round to help keep food pantries well-stocked no matter the season. The partnering food pantries are rotated throughout the year to ensure broader outreach.
During the month leading up to the Thanksgiving campaign, customers are encouraged to purchase a $10 Simply Give donation card upon checkout, either in stores or while shopping online. The donation is converted into a Meijer food-only gift card and donated directly to a local food pantry selected by the store.
This signature program has generated more than $75 million since 2008. TDP’s campaign includes a :60, :30 and :15 for TV and a :30 and :15 for streaming audio. Ads will run on social and broadcast networks in Meijer’s markets throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Wisconsin.
The creative opens on the tender scene of a family gathering for a Thanksgiving meal at home. As the husband slices the bird and his wife gathers attendees to the table, plates are filled with turkey, stuffing, potatoes and gravy, ham, greens, macaroni and cheese and passed person to person until a young girl takes a plate outdoors and passes it to a line of people on the street. Plates are passed along with one person bringing a plate to an elderly man at his home and another man accepting a plate in a cafeteria, soup-kitchen setting. Countless plates continue their journey throughout the community, as the voiceover says, “This Thanksgiving, you can feed more people than ever before.” We come back into the home where the action originated as the turkey carver asks his family, “Does everyone have everything they need?”
“We have the opportunity to tell a simple, beautiful story simply because Meijer is doing a beautiful thing,” said John Condon, TDP’s founder and chief creative officer. Adding, “Thanksgiving is our national holiday of sharing and food. It’s when we make a point of sharing our bounty with those close to us. In times of economic uncertainty, many are relying on the help of others to get by. And Meijer made it extraordinarily easy to help. For every purchase that includes a Meijer brand food product, the Simply Give program will provide a meal to feed a neighbor in need. This Thanksgiving, I’ll be giving thanks for working with people like that.”
ALSO READ:
The Simply Give holiday campaign will run through Dec. 31. Meijer will double match any cards purchased on Giving Tuesday (Nov. 29) and Saturday, Dec. 17, effectively tripling contributions made on those days.
Client: Meijer
Agency: The Distillery Project
Founder/Copywriter: John Condon
Founding Partner/CSO: Ben Kline
Head of Operations/Partner: Kim Tanner
Head of Production/Partner: Nik Traxler
Creative Director: Phil Jungmann
ACD/Copywriter: Jane Condon
Business Affairs Manager: Bonnie Kalaf
Senior Producer: Brenda Cortés
Production: Bob Industries
Partner: John Grady
Director: Christian Loubek
Producer: Russell VanNortwick
Editorial: Cutters Chicago
Editor: Marian Oliver
Assistant Editor: Ashley Smith
Exec. Producer: Patrick Casey
Post Production: Flavor
Exec. Producer: Bruce Rindler
Colorist: Chris Elliott
Music House: JSM New York
CEO/CCO/Co-Composer: Joel Simon
VP/Executive Producer: Jeff Fiorello
Senior Producer: Norm Felker
Senior Producer: Andrew Manning
Producer: Sharon Cha
Co-Composer: Seamus Kilmartin
Audio House: MargaritaMix Santa Monica
Operations Manager: Brian Frank
Sound Engineer: Nathan Dubin
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