Nando's: Hell No, We Won't Dough

Havas Village – a joint offering that includes Havas Media, The Annex, and Havas Sports & Entertainment (HSE) – has launched a collaborative media campaign for fast-casual, South African-Portugese restaurant chain, Nando’s PERi-PERi in Chicago. The Havas Village brings together different departments of Havas Media to deliver a comprehensive, full-service team via an integrated approach. The “Stand Against Bland” campaign marks the first Chicago Village win for the Annex.

With 12 successful locations in the greater Chicago area, the campaign kicks off the opening of Nando’s PERi-PERi’s thirteenth location on Michigan Avenue, using a combination of digital and social content to generate brand awareness and conversation. “Stand Against Bland” uses protest-art iconography to tap into the public debate over issues like race relations, the Trump Administration’s controversial travel ban, and the fight for reproductive rights.

Some key elements of the Nando’s campaign include:
-WE ARE PRO-PRO CHOICE
From Lemon & Herb to Extra Hot PERi-PERi, the power is in your hands
-A TRAVEL BAN WON’T STOP THIS PEPPER
From Southern African farms to your face, PERi-PERi brings the heat to Chicago chicken
-WHITE MEAT DARK MEAT, EQUAL HEAT
We believe all chicken deserves the same spicy PERi-PERi treatment
-HELL NO WE WON’T DOUGH
But we will flame-grill chicken basted in spicy PERi-PERi perfection

Nando’s PERi-PERi has a history of using creative advertising as social commentary – earlier this year, during the presidential Inauguration, Nando’s PERi-PERi launched its “Everyone Is Welcome” campaign in Washington, DC, and Chicago.

“Stand Against Bland” builds on this brand message and also marks the CTA’s (Chicago Transit Authority) first allowance of mobile couponing – coupons placed inside the train cars moving from one station to the next. Havas Village and Nando’s PERi-PERi have wrapped two CTA Red Line train cars in Nando’s PERi-PERi signage externally and placed buy-one-get-one coupons inside the carriages, allowing riders to rip the paper coupons off the interior of the trains and use them at Nando’s PERi-PERi locations throughout the city.

The campaign concludes on October 1st and will also utilize social amplification via an online contest and creative content on Spotify and YouTube, as well as OOH and guerilla marketing signage to drive brand awareness.