🎯 Cup Noodles Hires A Vampire
Hi, Marketers!
The ad is mutating into a ritual: eat this, wear this, show up here, fold this, tell your friends what happened.
Cup Noodles Hires A Vampire
TL;DR: Cup Noodles has handed its social channels to Vladison, a fictional 300-year-old vampire influencer promoting garlic-flavored Vampire Noodles. Created with Cornett, the six-week campaign plays with familiar creator formats, from product reviews to bag tours, across TikTok, Instagram and other platforms. More than 40 social assets, a Substack page and a Titan Casket collaboration extend the character's improbable first sponsorship. Read more →
Chili's Lets Creators Lead
TL;DR: At Advertising Week New York, Chili's social and influencer director Luz Bickert said creator partnerships helped grow the Triple Dipper's share of sales from 7% to 15%. A casual car mukbang with Lizzo and creator Keila Pacheco outperformed its polished campaign spot. Chili's now builds creators into major campaigns and carries their content into paid media. Read more →
Southwest Rewards Notification Overload
TL;DR: Southwest's Enter Airplane Mode campaign turns digital burnout into a reason to travel. Rapid Rewards members can upload screenshots of piled-up phone notifications to earn points, while a separate burnout quiz offers another incentive. Created with GSD&M and narrated by Adam Scott, the campaign connects an emotional escape story to concrete rewards for planning a getaway. Read more →
Chipotle Makes Its Ingredients Sing
TL;DR: Chipotle has recorded From Ground to Sound at Abbey Road Studios with the London Vegetable Orchestra, using instruments made entirely from its fresh ingredients. Three months of experimentation turned corn, peppers and other produce into playable instruments. The track, accompanied by a behind-the-scenes film, will become a signature sound across selected campaigns, making the brand's real-food message audible. Read more →
St. Pete Pays For Discovery
TL;DR: Visit St. Pete-Clearwater is recruiting three temporary executives to explore its nightlife, food and culture, offering each $10,000 plus travel and accommodation for a ten-day stay. Applicants submit videos, while selected participants create content for the tourism bureau's social feeds. The playful job titles turn destination promotion into a recruitment campaign that invites outsiders to tell their own stories. Read more →
Ferrero Sends Nutella To Super Bowl
TL;DR: Ferrero is committing more than $50 million to marketing around Super Bowl 2027, including commercials for Kinder Bueno and Nutella, the spread's first appearance in the game. The investment follows Kinder Bueno's debut this year, which Ferrero says helped lift sales volume. The company is using the sports moment to build awareness across its growing portfolio in the United States. Read more →
Knix Builds On BookTok Fandom
TL;DR: Knix is building a collection around A Court of Thorns and Roses after customers named the fantasy-romance series their most-wanted collaboration. More than 40 employee fans helped shape its details. A waiting list opened October 5, followed by an October 15 launch and New York pop-up featuring 30 BookTok creators, timed ahead of the next book's release. Read more →
Audi Brings Dining To Race Weekend
TL;DR: Audi and 1 Hotels are bringing three-Michelin-starred SingleThread to Austin for a three-night dining experience during the Formula 1 US Grand Prix weekend. The October 22-24 dinners extend Audi's hotel partnership beyond transport. At the new Austin property, house-car service and curated local drives will keep the automaker part of guests' experience after race weekend ends. Read more →
Chase Turns Experiences Into Content
TL;DR: At Advertising Week New York, JPMorgan Chase CMO Carla Hassan described using the bank's more than 5,000 branches and events such as Sapphire's Dinner on the Court to engage customers and create digital content. She also said AI models digest brand videos, connecting the company's experiential and social efforts with how it appears in emerging AI-driven discovery channels. Read more →
Cotswold Connects Store Screens
TL;DR: UK retailer Cotswold Outdoor Group has expanded its retail media network with Broadsign and IUF, connecting 149 displays across 23 stores to its advertising operations. The infrastructure links in-store placements with online campaigns through its Zitcha platform. Broadsign says a HOKA campaign combining website and store media delivered a 13% increase in units sold per store, supporting the network's expansion. Read more →
Fidium Folds The Competition
TL;DR: US internet provider Fidium is turning rival providers' mailed advertising into a craft project through Junk Mail Makeover, a campaign from Bray & Co. A dedicated website teaches people to fold unwanted flyers into paper airplanes, cranes and fortune tellers. Running through 2027 with Instagram and Facebook activity, the effort extends the brand's existing campaigns around frustration with cable internet. Read more →
GapStudio Dresses Miami City Ballet
TL;DR: GapStudio and Gap creative director Zac Posen have redesigned costumes for Miami City Ballet's presentation of Jerome Robbins' Opus Jazz, opening October 16. Director Ezra Hurwitz has created a campaign film featuring the dancers and their new wardrobes. Denim, T-shirts and sneakers connect Gap's everyday clothing to the ballet's original spirit, with distinct looks for each of its 16 performers. Read more →
O2 Extends Its Arena Deal
TL;DR: AEG and Virgin Media O2 have extended the naming rights partnership for London's O2 arena until 2038, ahead of the venue's twentieth anniversary next year. The agreement increases tickets available through Priority by 50% and adds access to shows at the smaller indigo venue. O2 and Virgin Media broadband customers receive the benefits as the long-running live entertainment partnership continues. Read more →
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