NEW LYONS TEA TV AD REVEALS LYONS ADDS ‘TALK’ TO ITS TEA
Dublin, 7th February 2010: To celebrate the launch of its new advertising campaign, Lyons Tea commissioned research into what Irish people talk about over a cup of tea, and who they like to have their tea with.
The research conducted by Millward Brown in January 2010 revealed;
* Cork people are perceived as the biggest talkers in the Republic of Ireland (36%), followed by Dublin (25%), Kerry (10%), Donegal (4%) and Galway (2%)
* One in ten Irish people said they would like to meet Barack Obama for a cup of tea if they could meet anyone in the world, but 10% would simply choose to meet a member of their own family
* 86% of Irish people drink tea and tea permeates every facet of Irish life.
* 97% of tea drinkers normally enjoy a cuppa at home, over half of full time workers drink tea in the office and 16% normally drink tea in cafes and restaurants
* 65% of tea drinkers say they normally drink tea with family and 46% say they drink tea with friends
* One in five Irish people will talk about anything and everything over a cuppa
* The top three conversation topics over a cup of tea are family (20%), gossip (19%) and work (18%)
Lyons Tea’s humorous new TV advertisement, ‘The Master Blender’, launches tomorrow 8th February. The new campaign brings the tongue in cheek story of how Lyons adds ‘talk’ to its tea to life, centring on the master tea blender and his apprentice who reveal that after adding different types of talk to the tea, conversation starts to flow amongst the people who drink it.
Set in a magical tea factory, ‘The Master Blender’ TV advertisement takes us on a journey as the Lyons Tea Master tea blender brings his young apprentice on his first tour. The two walk along a great hallway lined with thousands of tea caddies each labelled with a different thing people talk about - Celebrity Gossip, Bank Bashing, Girl Talk, Rumours. The Master blender reveals that this is where Lyons stores the talk for the tea, and picks out a caddy labelled ‘Footy Talk’. The two then proceed to the Blending Room where the Master blender adds the talk to the pyramid tea bags so that when people drink them the talk comes out. The ad then cuts to two women sipping tea in a sitting room. They’re drinking the ‘Footie Talk’ blend with one commenting ‘Barbara. With the aerial threat he brings, he has to be in the squad.’ Her friend sips her tea before answering. ‘No, Eleanor, you’re living in the past. We need a fox in the box.’ The voiceover reveals ‘Lyons puts the talk into tea’.
Speaking of the new campaign, Liz Finlay, Marketing Manager, Lyons Tea said, “It’s no secret that Irish people are both big talkers and big tea drinkers - the secret is we, at Lyons, have been adding talk to the tea! The talk combined with the best blends of the finest tea makes for the best tasting, conversational cuppa! We’re delighted with our new TV advertisement and we think consumers will find this is just the right blend of fairytale, magic and humour! Our research also revealed that less than half of Irish tea drinkers have been talking about Football over the last month – so it’s the ideal time to add some ‘Footie Talk’ to our tea.”
Developed by Irish advertising agency, Rothco, the 40 second TV advertisement was directed by Stephen St. Leger, who has previously worked for brands such as Vodafone, An Post and Amstel amongst others. It was produced by H2 Films and post produced by Windmill Lane Pictures. The campaign will include a number of TV, radio and outdoor advertising executions over the coming months. ‘The Master Blender’ is currently airing on all TV channels and will be supported by radio and advertising on 48-sheets and an intensive programme of PR activity.
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ENDS
For further information, stills, and Mpegs of the ad please contact:
Kate FitzGerald / Cliodhna Lamont
WHPR
Tel: 01 6690030 / 086 3873083 (Kate) / 087 9250874(Cliodhna)
Click the link to view the new Lyons Tea ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwIs4KwjcrI
Additional Information About the Details in the Ad:
* From the exterior of the tea factory to the wall high lines of tea caddies filled with conversation topics, the new Lyons Tea TV advertisement features layers of detail to create a magical tea wonderland setting.
* The factory building is flanked by huge brass tanks with spouts and handles like teapots and on the roof stands a vast skylight in the shape of a pyramid – a nod to the pyramid tea bags.
* The Blending Room features an array of elaborate equipment and eyecatching details including tea pots carved into the wooden roof beams and light fittings in shape of upside down cups and saucers.
About Lyons Tea
* Lyons Tea employs expert master blenders and tasters to select the best blends and combination of some of the finest teas from Kenya, Assam from India and Ceylon from Sri Lanka to produce the highest quality tea. Lyons Tea is available from leading supermarkets and retailers nationwide.
* Lyons is Ireland’s number one tea brand with 42% market share***; Lyons is an iconic Irish brand with more than 100 years of tradition in Ireland, having started business in Dublin in 1902 near Christ Church Cathedral. It is now owned by Unilever Ireland.
* Lyons Tea is Ireland’s favourite tea. The Lyons Tea range includes Lyons Gold Blend, Lyons Original Blend, Lyons Gold Blend Reserve, Lyons Kenya Blend, and Lyons Decaffeinated Tea. Lyons Green Tea is available in original, with Lemon and with Mint. For further information on Lyons Tea visit www.lyonstea.ie
* Lyons tea is currently working with the Rainforest Alliance - independent experts in sustainability and by 2012 all our tea will only come from Rainforest Alliance Certified™ farms.
* For more information visit www.lyonstea.ie
***AC Nielsen 27th December 2009
About Unilever Ireland
Unilever Ireland is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Unilever plc and is responsible for the selling and marketing of a portfolio of leading food and home & personal care brands. Our portfolio includes brands such as Lyons Tea, Knorr, Flora, Hellmann’s, HB ice cream, Persil, Surf, Domestos, Dove and Lynx. For more information on Unilever Ireland please visit www.unilever.ie