Dogs and cats are leading the initiative to strip pet food of artificial ingredients in Anomaly’s first work for Petco (where the healthy pets go).
The minute-long “Cleaning House” ad spotlights Petco’s commitment to complete this shift by May, becoming the only major pet food retailer to remove all artificial coloring, flavoring and preservatives from the products sold in its stores. According to the spot, the list of banned ingredients includes benzoic acids, sulfite and butylate—which can be seen being thrown from the shelves by some proactive, health-conscious pets.
The humans eventually step in to lend a helping hand to their furry friends.
With this new campaign, Petco aims to set new standards for pet nutrition and prompt pet owners to follow them accordingly.
“Last year, we put the entire pet industry on notice by introducing new standards for nutrition, because we firmly believe it’s the right thing to do for pets,” Petco CMO Tariq Hassan said in a statement. “This campaign breathes life into that decision and the journey that lies ahead for Petco. It’s a departure from anything we’ve done before and a direct reflection of our ongoing brand transformation to meet the evolving demands of pet parents.”
The campaign—which includes TV, online video, display, paid social and search, digital and influencer components—began on Monday and will run through Petco’s fiscal year ending on Jan. 31, 2020. It’s the first campaign from MDC Partners-owned Anomaly, which picked up the creative account in December 2018. Horizon Media, which scooped up Petco AOR duties in January, handled media.
“This bold gesture by Petco is part of an even greater mission to transform the brand and the category,” added Eric Segal, CCO, Anomaly. “This meant we needed to match their ambition with a campaign that looked and sounded like nothing else out there, filled with joy and momentum to make you undeniably feel the seismic shift coming and entice you to come along for the ride.”
