Aunt Millie’s came to BIG with all the ingredients to be a household name: a 120-year history as a family bakery; more than a million pounds of freshly baked bread, delivered daily; and a binder full of current research about the Aunt Millie’s brand. Their request? Create a campaign that dramatically boosts awareness of Aunt Millie’s and brings the brand closer to home.

BIG’s strategy team pored over the pages of data Aunt Millie’s provided. While it was clear that the previous researchers had done their due diligence, it quickly became obvious they were not a branding firm. Their recommendations were light on strategic thinking, focusing instead on a laundry list of purely tactical solutions.

BIG started back at Square One, sifting through the data to identify the tangible differentiators that could serve as the foundation for a strong brand strategy. In the end, three differentiators rose to the top:

1. Customer-focused distribution 
Aunt Millie’s has built a bakery/delivery infrastructure in each of five major midwestern markets, giving them the capability to deliver fresh-baked product, multiple times each day

2. Premium ingredients that are similar to those found in the typical family kitchen 
Certified raw ingredients, winter white wheat, natural honey and no dairy are staples in most Aunt Millie’s recipes

3. A part of daily family life 
Aunt Millie’s has been feeding families for generations and carries the most varieties of any commercial bakery.

After exploring several theme alternatives, the team chose to go with “Closer to Home.” This concept centered around the fact that Aunt Millie’s baked goods are the closest to what customers can bake in their own kitchens, and are available fresh, every day at their favorite local grocer. The new theme was warm, nostalgic and a natural next step forward from Aunt Millie’s well-known “We bake memories” tagline.

The BIG strategic team focused the campaign on six major urban markets: Indianapolis, Chicago, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Columbus and Grand Rapids. While messaging would be customized to each market, imagery would include readily recognizable landmarks from each market.

Brainstorming and creative discussion generated a mountain of ideas scrawled on sticky notes and plastered to the conference room windows, including an animated approach featuring an infectiously catchy jingle and a warmly emotional “slice-of-life” approach. The winner was a unique approach that showed people in red Aunt Millie’s-branded aprons getting the most out of their everyday lives—thanks to Aunt Millie’s bread.

A five-state, 1,400-mile video and photo shoot resulted in a library of engaging images of people from every walk of life, proudly sporting their red Aunt Millie’s apron in very public situations, such as a yoga class, a business meeting, a construction site—even a traffic stop.

The campaign kicked off with a special soundtrack—the charmingly bouncy 1964 song by the New Beats, titled “Bread and Butter.” BIG worked with Sony to receive the rights to use the song for the first 6 months of the campaign. After that, BIG enlisted the help of a professional music studio to find an equally energetic, budget-friendly alternative.

In just two months, the campaign rolled out in the target markets—and it was everywhere. Audio ads played on Spotify and Pandora. Video ads appeared on a wide range of streaming platforms, including Amazon Video, YouTube TV, Sling, Fubo TV and Paramount Streaming. A robust social media campaign brought ads to Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok, targeting the areas surrounding every retail location. Delivery trucks wrapped with new “Closer to Home” graphics delivered products to matching point-of-purchase displays.