Carlsberg Export had been repositioned as a premium lager in the UK, re-launching with “the Danish way” campaign starring Mads Mikkelsen as a bicycle-riding Danish philosopher. Making the British audience aware of Carlsberg’s provenance as a Danish beer from Copenhagen increased their premium perceptions of the brand. The core target audience of men aged 25-34 were beginning to re-appraise Carlsberg as a brand “I’d like to be seen drinking”. It was time to build on it by bringing our philosophy right into twenty-something British life, inviting Carlsberg’s audience to embrace living the Danish Way for themselves. Of the tenets of living Danishly, taking a break from technology to spend time face to face was most relevant to swipe-happy British millennials and, in a world of desk jobs, lunchtime meal deals, Amazon Prime, and TaskRabbit, the chance to build something with their hands from the ground up was highly aspirational.

Build the Danish Way took something very British (a pint at the pub) and put it through a Danish lens (sustainable, beautifully designed, tasteful, and simple) and, in doing so, gave six hand-picked strangers a complete immersion in the Danish way of life - embracing the philosophies and rituals that lead to Denmark being the happiest nation in the world - and brewing the world’s best beer.

The finished pub would not just be just a world first, reflecting Carlsberg’s progressive values, but an inventive, environmentally-conscious design weaving around the trunks of pre-existing trees, reflecting the Danish love of nature and the forest. In the same way as the series’ cinematic, heroic take on friendship is “anti-reality tv” the pub would be an “anti- popup” - a permanent, sustainable building available on Airbnb. Complete with a supply of Carlsberg and a handbound guide “The Danish Stay”.

The strategy was to create “content that becomes culture” by creating something of genuine cultural value. Build the Danish way is a piece of architecture noteworthy as a piece of

design, innovation, and as an environmental piece. It created a particular experience for those who built it, and it lives on as a brand experience for a wider audience. Many content series, from The Island to Love Island, take “real people” out of their environments and set them on a challenge, casting “strong characters” to create maximum conflict, charging story producers to contrive tension. They are themselves a hallmark of British culture, but that’s not the Danish way. So instead, this content series told a more fanciful story of adventure in the forest with warmth and affection for its protagonists. Participants embraced Danish values of simplicity and open communication to create a team capable of pulling off the ground-breaking build.

The entire process of constructing the Carlsberg Cabin was captured in the brand documentary Build the Danish way, which was split into 4 episodic “chapters” of varying lengths. The series was published to CarlsbergUK’s YouTube channel. To bring the audience into the series a 60” trailer was cut, alongside a suite of shorter social trailers and teaser pieces, which were promoted across all social channels.

The campaign ran for a total of 9 weeks, from 13th August 2018 to 14th October 2018. The campaign was distributed as follows: Instagram stories: Live for 3 weeks from 13th August; Instagram & Facebook In-Feed: Live for 4 weeks from 13th August; Facebook Canvas: Live for 3 weeks from 29th August; Retargeting activity: Live for a week from 8th October.

The content, which ran across Carlsberg’s YouTube, Facebook and Instagram channels, reached 5.3M men across the UK. Over 15 social influencers stayed at The Cabin, documenting their Danish Stays on their own channels, delivering 19,000 engagements. Engagement levels for paid media exceeded industry benchmarks, with 100% positive sentiment.