What do moustaches have to do with mental health? Pringles celebrates Movember

Andrew Birks, Lead Business Analyst, Kellogg UK

What about the Movember campaign with Pringles are you most proud of?

Andrew: It’s hard to express in words how the campaign brought together a group of people, many of whom had never even spoken previously, and the energy, shared passion and drive that it created.  Against the backdrop of a global pandemic, and the impact that it was having on many, through mental health issues (and the other Men’s Health issues that Movember supports), that group joined together in a way that I have rarely seen to move towards a common objective. From a personal perspective, I established relationships and formed bonds with an amazingly diverse group of people. The camaraderie, support and encouragement within the group was incredible.

Whilst the commercial work that was done with one of our biggest customers, Tesco, was undoubtedly a success, and can be measured in terms of sales, revenue and profit; I cannot help but feel that all who were involved would share similar views in saying that the commercial success was dwarfed by the unquantifiable outputs of that group. Who can put a value on supporting a colleague who is struggling with their mental health, or persuading someone to visit their general practitioner for a prostate cancer check up. I could not be more proud of everyone involved; who are now my mo bro’s and Sista’s for life.

Gareth Maguire, Senior Marketing Director, Pringles North America

What personal connection do you have to Movember and mental health that makes this work special?

Gareth: My personal connection was both sudden and heartbreaking with the suicide of a close friend earlier this year. This was all the more upsetting with COVID lockdown restrictions and the inability to connect immediately with his widow and family. The penny really dropped for me about the amount of people that are quietly struggling with mental health issues, afraid to seek help or talk about it. As I opened up to friends and colleagues about my friend’s suicide, I observed that by how, once the ice was broken, they opened up about their lives and struggles that included things like aging and sick parents, adolescent children and worries for their careers. It was then that I realized that, together, we were helping each other feel a little better by addressing our fears out loud. Many people who seem to be totally fine at work and home have a lot of heavy stuff going on.

So while growing the mustaches was a bit of fun for November, and obviously linked nicely to our brand’s mascot, Mr. P, the underlying message is very powerful and relevant to all of us. Check in on your family, friends and colleagues. Have real conversations and support each other. And where you can, raise a little money for Movember’s work that supports underprivileged and vulnerable communities that don’t have access to counseling and support services, among other issues.

Rachel Jones, Associate Brand Manager, Pringles U.S.

What type of effort does it take internally to pull off this campaign?

Rachel:  Pulling off a campaign like Movember is a lot of work, but it’s extremely rewarding. There are many stakeholders and teams you need to coordinate with. For the external parts of this campaign, I was working with the team at Movember to understand their mission, our agency partners to create captivating social and influencer content, our Kroger sales team to create an exciting in-store program, and the supply chain to ensure our displays were delivered on time. For our internal activations, I worked with members of our Kapable Business/Employee Resource Group, Internal Communications, the U.S. Kellogg’s Family Rewards program and many others to create some awesome content that encouraged others to get involved, raise money and, most import, talk mental health. The best part has been rallying Pringles teams members to join the cause! It’s been a great experience getting to work on a brand I love so much and help it amplify such an important cause.

Kate Prince, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Kellogg UK

What type of reaction have you seen from consumers about the Movember efforts?

Kate:  We have had an incredible response to the Pringles collaboration with Movember. To launch the campaign, we took over the streets of London, Paris, Berlin and Dublin to raise awareness of the simple questions men can use to start conversations around mental health. Our research showed that a quarter of men don’t know where to start, so we tried to help. This “clean graffiti” captured the eyes of passersby by asking questions like “How are you coping with everything?” or “How are you feeling on a scale of 1-10?.” It’s really grabbed everyone’s attention and people have been taking photos and sharing the questions on their social media channels, which is exactly the reaction we hoped for.