2023 OmniShopper Awards: Packaging

Packaging

Campaign: Dia de los Muertos 2022 - Create Your Calavera Literaria with Victoria

Brand: Victoria (Constellation Brands)
Agency/Solution Provider: Upshot

In Mexico, Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a time to rejoice and honor loved ones who have passed on. But in the U.S., the holiday tends to get overtaken by a sea of spooky imagery, as it comes right on the heels of Halloween. 

Victoria beer wanted to give its core audience of first-generation Mexican-American men a new and more authentic reason to celebrate Dia de los Muertos in 2022. And with good reason: 59% of Hispanics seek out brands that acknowledge their culture’s unique traditions.

Building on its Mexican heritage and strong ties to the Hispanic community, Victoria came up with the idea to leverage calaveritas literarias — a holiday tradition of creating short, playful expressions of deep and complicated feelings, often directed toward the deceased. Interactive limited-edition packages of Victoria beer featured colorful skull imagery that helped to illustrate the concept, forming the centerpiece of the program.

A QR code linked to a microsite that allowed users to customize one of the calaveras options, choosing from an array of illustrations and messages while deciding whether to add a loved one’s name in personal tribute. These became shareable images that connected Victoria beer drinkers to their celebrations with friends and families as part of their rich Mexican roots.

Dollar sales of Victoria beer saw a 51.9% increase over the previous year during the two-month program. Consumer engagement also exceeded expectations, with the customizable packages and microsite producing an average engagement time of 1:03 and engagement rate of 64.23%.