Marcus Rebeschini Y&R Regional HQs Chief Creative Officer Kit Ong Executive Creative Director Oji Valencia Associate Creative Director Vuong Nguyen Art Director Huy Nguyen Senior Art Director Khoa Lam Junior Art Director Mita Vu, Bao Duong, Cuong Nguyen Designer Thach Thao Nguyen, Le Nguyen, Kit Ong Copywriter Huy Ho Studio Manager Hung Nguyen Digital Creative Alex Mcmillan Photographer Claris Alvarez Producer Dung La Account Director Tuan Pham Senior Account Executive
SPECIAL THANKS to my dad, easy riders/Xe-ôms for helping us make this happen :).
THE PROBLEM | In Vietnam, many of the best local eateries are tucked away in narrow, hard-to-navigate alleyways, making them difficult for food lovers to find. At the same time, oral care brands struggle to talk about “food caught in-between teeth” without sounding repetitive or overly clinical.
THE IDEA
“Foods cannot hide in-between teeth from Colgate. Now, neither can foods in alleyways”
We connected the metaphor of food hiding in hard-to-reach places in your mouth to the hidden culinary gems tucked away in the alleyways of Ho Chi Minh City. By launching the Colgate Hidden Foods Directory, Colgate turned local food discovery into a metaphor for complete oral care—promising to seek out hidden food wherever it hides.
THE EXECUTION
- Local Guides: Partnered with Vietnam’s local “Xe Ôm” (motorcycle taxi) drivers—who know every nook and cranny of the city—to seek out and map hard-to-find alleyway eateries.
- Branded Mobile Media: Equipped drivers with custom branded vests featuring pockets that distributed printed physical maps (Colgate Hidden Foods Directory) to passengers and foodies on the go.
- On-Site Branding: Marked partner eateries with Colgate-branded location pins (“Colgate đã giúp bạn tìm ra món ngon ‘ẩn núp’ này”) connecting the joy of eating hidden local dishes with keeping teeth clean and fresh using Colgate’s complete oral care range afterwards.
