Bringing Functional Benefits to an Emotional Category

Putting Proof in the Chocolate

Challenge

In 2013, we knew we were a company rich with foresight on what's shaping consumers changing preferences, but we hadn't yet put our foresights to the test. So we challenged ourselves to create a new brand that we believed would be a meaningful proof point for future products.

Approach

We started by mining our proprietary FutureCodes and defined Non-Binary Choices as a strong signal of change. Whether that choice is about gender, music, fashion, or what to eat - the choice would increasingly come down to the individual and not what societal norms dictate.

As we applied this signal to a broad range of categories, chocolate emerged as an exciting example of a non-binary choice of pure indulgence with naturally occurring antioxidants. We pushed the idea further, and Wicked & Wonderful Chocolate was born – bars of wickedly indulgent premium chocolate packed with even more delicious functional ingredients.

After shaping the opportunity, we put our pastry chefs, creative strategists, designers, and cultural anthropologists through an Innovation Sprint. The result: a full range of amazingly intoxicating chocolates with functional benefits.

We knew we were onto something when we launched the brand through a Limited Edition release, sold out, and started to get deliciously appreciative responses. Features in publications like The Dieline and the Drum started ranking the product as a fan favourite with comments like, "So many things about this make me happy. The printing. The paper. The copy. And oh, my, the chocolate. Lavender. Chilli. Mmmmm."

We then collaborated with one of the UK's top chocolatiers, Ben Axford, to expand the product range and prepare it for the market launch. Today, Wicked & Wonderful still celebrates the duality of sinfully good indulgences and is available for purchase here.

Outputs

• Brand & Packaging Creation
• Product Development
• Launch Plan