SURREAL’s ultra-honest OOH stunt

SURREAL Cereal launched a profoundly honest and self-aware Out-of-Home (OOH) campaign that boldly satirizes the complex, often-overblown process of corporate rebranding. Instead of focusing on product health benefits or flavor, the campaign leverages massive billboards to comically confess the minor, tedious, and sometimes costly work that went into their minor packaging evolution. 

The creative features a series of large, minimalist billboards across multiple sites, each showcasing the cereal’s “OLD” and “NEW” packaging side-by-side. The central space on the billboard is dominated by massive text that reveals an internal, exaggerated struggle, turning a corporate effort into a universally funny, relatable joke. The highly effective messaging includes confessions like: “It took us 11 months to slightly change the colour,” and the self-deprecating query, “Please don’t ask how much we spent on our ‘new’ logo.” Other placements emphasize the labor: “19 people worked on this project and all we’ve done is shove a bowl of cereal on the front,” or mention the sheer number of futile attempts: “Thirty-seven drafts just to move the logo to the other side.” 

This highly strategic meta-marketing approach is amplified by the non-skippable nature and sheer scale of OOH. By being aggressively transparent and sharing the marketing industry’s hidden process, SURREAL cuts through the typical corporate gloss and establishes an immediate, memorable, and human connection with its audience. The visibility of these petty concerns displayed on monumental billboards enhances the humor and absurdity, successfully positioning SURREAL as a transparent, fun, and highly non-traditional brand in the competitive breakfast category, ultimately driving conversation far beyond the physical placements.