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The thrill of the chase: Hallensteins and Publicis Mojo go moose huntin’

Youtube VideoPublicis Mojo and Hallensteins received a smack on the hand recently after a fun-hater complained about the lyrics of the Sleigh Bells song used in its first ‘Brothers’ commercial. And the pair have gone down what could be another slightly controversial road for the next big push, with a campaign that hopes to catch the illustrious yet highly elusive New Zealand Canadian moose.

The campaign, which launches this Sunday with a Thick as Thieves TVC (the website is due to go live today), offers a bounty of $100,000 to anyone with visual evidence of a live moose in New Zealand. Mojo creative director Lachlan McPherson says speculation about the moose (moose? mooses? moosi?) has continued ever since they were released into the New Zealand wilderness 100 years ago. The agency says there has been speculation about their existence since 1952.

Joining the party, which is conveniently tied into Hallensteins’ winter range, is “moose expert” Ken Tustin, who has been on the trail of the elusive moose for over 30 years.

“[Ken] knows where they are and has DNA evidence, he just hasn’t seen one yet. We need to know more about what could be the last surviving population of moose in the Southern Hemisphere,” says McPherson. “We brought Ken up here and did a media tour with him. TV3 news picked up the story and ended up sending a television crew down to his home in the deep south to do a story with him.”

Due to that story, the campaign had to be brought forward due to people showing interest in the bounty before the campaign had officially launched.

“Word got out beforehand so it was somewhat rushed.”

The campaign will include bounty posters on the street, press, in-store activation and a radio component. The clothes of course are the “real” story, tying in to the moose hunt (or the moose hunt tying into the clothing).

“The theme for the winter look is check and Sherpa, and the origin of that trend stems from hunting equipment in the northern hemisphere.” Says McPherson. “We wanted to make that look relevant in a New Zealand context but also wanted to bring some fun to it.”

McPherson explains that, like the speculation of the moose itself, Mojo wanted to do something for real, not just tell a fashion story.

Yes, $100,000 is a lot to fork out for spotting an animal, and yes, some may view it as a hoax. But McPherson is adamant that this is a genuine bounty, and Mojo are not playing any tricks. If no one is able to spot the moose, Hallensteins is also running a side competition where winners will be flown to Fiordland via helicopter to go looking for the moose themselves with the moose hunter.

“It’s something real guys can do, and potentially become a part of New Zealand history.”

Publicis Mojo won the Hallensteins account late last year.

Credits:

Creative Director Lachlan McPherson

Creative Guy Denniston

Creative Mikhail Gherman

Producer Rosie Grayson

Account Director Kath Purchase

Account Executive Ollie Wall

Production Company Thick as Thieves

Director Leo Woodhead

Producer Nikki Smith

Editor Jarrod Wright

PR Paul Ellis

 

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