Diet Coke

An original reborn.

Summary

Diet Coke has an almost cult-like following of loyalists, but there were signs that even they were beginning to drift. To help re-establish the brand as the style icon it once was – we collaborated with Kate Moss to create bold, unapologetically fashion-centric limited-edition designs. Taking inspiration from the brand’s heritage, we transformed classic ads into couture-inspired artworks, brought to life by fashion illustrator Mark-Antoine Coulon. This stylish activation reached 96% of British loyalists, boosted UK volume sales by +4.6%, and gained over 5.1 billion press impressions – proving that when it comes to style, Diet Coke has definitely still got it.

96 %

UK loyalists reached

+4.6 %

UK volume growth

5.1 b

Press impressions

Problem

Loyalists were taking a break from the brand.

Diet Coke has incredibly committed consumers, with 4 million loyalists enjoying the brand 12 times per year on average. But those numbers were beginning to dip as Diet Coke hadn’t activated for quite some time and a wave of fresh alternatives had entered the scene. We needed to win them back.

Consumer truth

Fashion is all about breaking expectations.

Diet Coke’s fashion-forward loyalists were at a stage in life where they were done with “shoulds”. What they should eat, who they should be, what they should look like. They know who they are, they know their style, and they know how to break expectations.

Diet Coke is the brand of the break.

Brand truth

The “Diet Coke Break”. The ultimate iconic ad campaign from the 1990s that made Diet Coke the go-to mid-day refreshment. Its celebration of a well-earned, guilt-free pause became a cultural phenomenon that gave rise to the brand’s stylish image.

This project had us turn our hand to fashion design and elevate cans to art pieces. A total creative feast! Cara Wilton-Kruger, Associate Creative Director

Unapologetic me-time moments.

Strategy

We teamed up with Kate Moss to shake off the ‘shoulds’ and celebrate unapologetic me-time moments. Collaborating with the queen of the catwalk herself, we created a meaningful stir in the soft drink category, inviting consumers to love what they love and take a Diet Coke break.

Cans become couture.

Concept

With two icons colliding, we needed to take inspiration from both. We reinterpreted a selection of classic Diet Coke TV ads, through a fashion lens — transforming each into unique, ‘runway-ready’ Kate Moss artworks.

From sketch to shelf.

Craft

Known for his delicate yet detailed watercolour and bold, dynamic ink line work, we commissioned French fashion artist Mark-Antoine Coulon to breathe life into our concept. These illustrations rolled out across the campaign, including packaging, shopper, social media, PR gifts, digital activation and a promotion mechanic.

Results

Style and substance.

The activation reached 96% of British Diet Coke loyalists an average of 18 times, grew UK volume sales by +4.6%, received over 70k competition entries, drove over 115k app installs, and garnered over 58 pieces of press coverage, reaching cumulative circulations of over 5.1 billion.