Pepsi's Refresh Project (The Naked Brand documentary)

I may be about five years late discussing this project, however, in a recent seminar I watched a documentary called 'The Naked Brand' which was all about how brands can help save the planet in an environmentally friendly way rather than destroying it like many brands who take on board concepts such as Fast Fashion, have been known to do. (For more details on Fast Fashion, you can read my blog post about the problems that have occurred in the industry surrounding the threatening subject by following this link: http://katefergvson.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/the-true-cost-of-fashion-is-fashion-too.html)
However, back to the Naked Brand, one aspect of the documentary which especially intrigued me was the Pepsi Refresh project of 2010.

The Pepsi Refresh Project consisted of PepsiCo redirecting their annual budget for the Super Bowl and instead granting $20 million to individuals, businesses and non-profit groups who were able to come up with new ideas to make the world a better place, help people in less privileged communities and initiatives to prevent global warming. The six different categories that were eligible for grants were health, arts & culture, food & shelter, the planet, neighbourhoods and education. Those who came up with these ideas and were chosen to be given a certain sum of money were:

• The American Legion of Indianapolis, IN, intended to use a $250,000 Refresh Grant to provide comfort items for U.S. military troops recovering from wounds (Neighbourhoods)
• The Economic Empowerment Initiative of Atlanta, GA, had a $50,000 grant to provide financial literacy seminars for high school and college students (Education)
• The Frank Broulliet Elementary School PTA had $50,000 to complete a community playground in Puyallup, WA (Neighbourhoods)
• All-Ages Music, a network of music organizations based in Seattle, WA, had $50,000 to increase access to all-ages music in underserved areas (Arts & Culture)
• The Hugs Project of Edmond, OK, had $50,000 to send care packages to troops overseas (Food & Shelter)
• The Belleville Farmer's Market had $25,000 of the Refresh Grant to grow fresh produce to help fight childhood obesity in southern Illinois schools (Health)
• 14-year old Jonny Cohen of Highland Park, IL, received $25,000 for GreenShields, a group he formed with his sister to make school buses more energy efficient (The Planet);
• Glenmont Elementary School of Delmar, NY, received  $25,000 Refresh Grant to build its community through swing dance (Arts & Culture)
• The Sparkle Effect of Bettendorf, IA, set to use their $25,000 Refresh Grant on helping high school kids across the country form cheerleading squads made up of special needs students (Neighbourhoods)
• Because We Are Sisters of Richmond, VA, received  $5,000 to support seven families in need as they prepare for the arrival of a baby (Food & Shelter).

Not only did this promote Pepsi on a national level but it also managed to get individuals socially connected across different mediums such as Twitter and Facebook but also within their communities to do something better for their country in a friendly way. Therefore, this strategy by Pepsi communicated a vision of families, friends and peers using their time wisely to do good deeds and come up with innovating ways to do so.

It is crazy to think that Chanel also spent the same mass amount of money on a brand promotion. However, Chanel spent their money on their Chanel No.5 fragrance advert campaign that starred Nicole Kidman and was directed by Baz Luhrrman. In comparison to the Pepsi's strategy, Chanel's advert had no benefits at all to the environment and instead only benefitted the fashion industry and the commercialisation of perfume.