In a time of fancy, low fat, low carb, natural and organic food fads, the humble sandwich appears to have lost a few fans. But Molenberg and Special Group aimed to win some back by opening up a temporary dedicated sandwich store in downtown Auckland, putting the call out to Kiwis for their favourite fillings. Be it a chicken, lamb, pastrami or cheese sandwich, the store set out to find the top seller.
The sandwich shop, opened up on Queen Street, was part of a campaign that invited New Zealanders to submit their ideas for the best sandwich. Each week one sandwich was chosen to sell alongside the others and the winner got to keep all the money their creation made.
The winning sandwiches included:
Emily’s ‘The lamb and beet’ – Molenberg Light Grains bread, pickled beetroot relish, roast lamb, tomatoes, cucumber, iceberg lettuce and red onion.
Gail’s ‘Cranberry Chick’ – Molenberg Soy and Linseed bread, shredded chicken, mayonnaise, dijon mustard, dried cranberries, spring onion, butterhead lettuce.
Bronwyn’s ‘Pastrami and Swiss’ – Molenberg Original bread, mayonnaise, pastrami, gherkins, Swiss cheese, lettuce and dijon mustard.
‘Kirs’ ‘Teriyaki Chicken ’ – Molenberg Original bread, Japanese Kewpie mayo, sliced red cabbage, teriyaki chicken breast, spring onions.
Hope’s ‘Hello Halloumi’ – Molenberg Original bread, caramelised red onion, dry fried halloumi, fried egg, grilled mushrooms, baby spinach and aioli. Then toasted.
At the end of the campaign the five weekly winners went head-to-head for the final week. Hope’s ‘Hello Halloumi’ was the winner, keeping the total takings of all the sandwiches sold that week.
Special Group general manager Hilary Cootes said there had been a lot of positive feedback on the shop.
“Molenberg succeeded in inspiring people and showing them just how great a sandwich can be.”
Special Group design director Heath Lowe said it wanted to create a space that felt like “fresh, everyday Kiwi goodness – the perfect sandwich shop for the perfect sandwich bread”.
For Special Group creative partner Rob Jack, the project was the perfect opportunity to show off Molenberg as the perfect sandwich bread.
“In Molenberg we had an innovative partner. Their commitment to launching and running a sandwich shop to showcase the potential of their iconic brand has been second to none.”
The campaign was promoted across multiple mediums including packaging, point of sale, radio, digital, social, PR, sampling and outdoor.
