Diageo embarks on biggest ever marketing campaign for Johnnie Walker Scotch brand

By Nigel Huddleston

Published: 17 September, 2015

Johnnie Walker has launched what is billed as the largest global marketing campaign in its history.

The Joy Will Take You Further campaign for the Diageo-owned blended Scotch brand will activate simultaneously in more than 50 countries and reach nearly 270 million consumers around the world within weeks of its launch, the company said.

The campaign features stars from the worlds of sport and entertainment including F1 driver Jenson Button, actors Jude Law and Zhao Wei, rock band OK Go and supermodel Montserrat Oliver.

Chief marketing officer Syl Saller said: "The launch of [previous Johnnie Walker campaign] Keep Walking marked a fundamental shift in the way Scotch was marketed and kick-started a decade of transformational growth for both Johnnie Walker and the category as a whole.

"I am hugely excited about the potential of this new campaign to drive Johnnie Walker forward to the next decade of growth.

"It is rooted in deep consumer insight and tells true stories of people who have truly walked with joy.

"At Diageo, we believe in building brands with purpose - meaning that goes beyond product benefits - and this is a great example of an incredibly strong idea that is brought to life with outstanding creative."

Guy Escolme, Johnnie Walker's global brand director, added that the new campaign challenged the conventional wisdom that success guarantees happiness to celebrate the idea that happiness helps people achieve success.

He said: "Johnnie Walker has always stood for progress. It's been the story of our whisky since our founder John Walker started it all nearly 200 years ago.

"What two centuries of experience have taught us is that progress doesn't have to be an endless uphill journey. We can enjoy the steps we take and the more happiness we find in them the more likely we are to achieve our goal."

The campaign will include "mentoring and customer experiences", a new TV commercial, print and digital advertising and POS.

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