Challenge, not celebrate! How to create new anniversary projects.

Happy New Year. I'm Onoe from Dentsu Inc. CDC.

Now that the new year has begun, I imagine conversations like, "This year marks our XXth anniversary! Let's celebrate in style, ha ha ha!" are popping up everywhere.
Anniversary projects are great for showcasing how long a product or company has been loved, and they're easy to understand, so budgets tend to flow in from various sources.
Anniversaries are celebrations.

But wait a minute.
Frankly, anniversaries don't really matter much to consumers.
If a neighbor says, "I turned 30," you can only respond with "Oh, okay." If it's even a neighbor, imagine how it feels with advertising.
The trigger for realizing this was the kamaboko 900th anniversary project, " KAMABOKO ROAD TO 1000."

So what if kamaboko goes viral?

The client was the National Kamaboko Federation (Zen Kamaren).
Their brief was: "Kamaboko first appeared in Fujiwara clan documents in 1115 during the Heian period. This year marks the 900th anniversary, so make kamaboko go viral!" Nine hundred years.

When our team first started brainstorming, we thought: "If we made kamaboko fly at crazy speeds and had high school girls chase it with parkour, that would go viral, right?"
We also thought it'd be cool to have a board that changes the shop's atmosphere when you blow on it.

But we quickly reconsidered.
Even if we did that, would kamaboko be okay?

Kamaboko consumption has been steadily declining lately.
There's even talk that young kids don't even know what kamaboko is made of.
Isn't the real issue how to address that?
Is this a problem that can be solved with a fleeting buzz? (Of course, some products thrive on that.)

Let's aim for a splendid 1000th anniversary. I won't be alive by then, though.

Come to think of it, the 900th anniversary feels like a halfway point.
The 1000th anniversary is much more suited for a grand celebration.
So, I've decided to set the 900th anniversary as "the first year of the 100-year journey toward the 1000th anniversary."
Let's establish a shared vision for where we want the industry to be in 100 years and start moving in the same direction together.

Think of it like the children's book 'Swimmy'.
Rather than each promoting separately, we're stronger when we move toward the same goal, even if it's just a little at a time.
To achieve a magnificent 1000th anniversary, we can't afford to spend money on weird animations or merchandise.

KAMABOKO ROAD TO 1000

Our first step was a nationwide survey of kamaboko artisans.
We asked them to fill out a section detailing their current dissatisfactions and their vision for the future.
We had them fill out these sections, and everyone from the National Kamaboko Association reviewed them together.
From there, we set a 100-year goal grounded in kamaboko facts, yet not entirely unrealistic.
Things like "Kamaboko saves the Earth" or "Kamaboko is popular in Hollywood."
Setting ambitious goals tends to fire up the artisans.

At the same time, this was meant for internal use and to generate buzz.
So, we thought it would be just right if people laughed, saying "Kamaboko's gone crazy!" After all, Luffy from 'One Piece' was laughed at in the beginning too.

Still, just having goals feels a bit dull.
So, I asked Shishiyamazaki-san (an artist in high demand by places like Parco and Prada), who happens to be a friend of a team member and also a kamaboko freak, to create the site's animations. I told him, "I'll give you as much kamaboko as you want." Then, thinking it would feel empty without music, I approached UKR-san ( OMAKE CLUB's top-recommended tracker), another acquaintance of a team member.
For craftsmen, watching it sparks motivation, and even for others, it becomes addictive. That's the kind of site we made.
Production was handled by Mr. Leiden. Everyone was part of an amazing team overflowing with love for kamaboko.
From Dentsu Inc., the four people featured at the beginning of the article participated in the project.

KAMABOKO ROAD TO 1000: http://kama1000.jp/
※We recommend turning on sound and viewing on a smartphone.

Launch date: July 21st, when kamaboko first appeared in historical records.
Simultaneously, we held an event in Kyoto, associated with the Fujiwara clan, to recreate kamaboko from recipes of that era. This gained traction through TV and web media coverage.

We made it. The Dream Kamaboko

The next timing we targeted was November 15th, Kamaboko Day.

The theme we focused on was Future Kamaboko.
A challenge facing the entire industry is the lack of a hit product since crab sticks.
While attempts have been made with various innovations like olive oil-based kamaboko, kamaboko cutlets, and daily-changing kamaboko, nothing has emerged to shake up the kamaboko industry.

To challenge the future and create a kamaboko unlike any before, we decided to enlist the help of elementary school students nationwide.
We solicited ideas for dream kamaboko from elementary schools nationwide.
We received over 10,000 submissions!
From these, we selected entries based on unexpectedness, originality, and potential to generate buzz. We then had our artisans actually make them.
We made them. Dream Kamaboko: http://kama1000.jp/yumekama/

The results were anything but ordinary: "Drinkable Kamaboko," "Kamaboko Robot," "Kamaboko Balan," "Dry Kamaboko," and "Candy Kamaboko."
Social media buzz was especially strong for the "Drinkable Kamaboko" and the "Balance Board."

Despite minimal PR, perhaps due to its "fulfilling children's dreams" appeal, it was featured in numerous media outlets. Somehow, even several radio stations covered it.

Above all, the children were delighted. And the craftsmen themselves became enthusiastic about the future, saying things like, "We never thought of that idea," and "Trying something different really creates this kind of impact." This made it a truly meaningful initiative.

Toward a Centennial Project

Above all, this is a 100-year anniversary project. We'll keep trying various things going forward.
If we keep challenging ourselves under the rule of "doing things that will benefit 100 years from now," we might just hit a home run someday. Everyone's perspective naturally turns toward the future. We simply don't have the luxury of chasing fleeting buzz.

Anniversary projects might as well be celebrations.
But since we're doing it anyway, let's turn this anniversary project into an opportunity to shape the future.
That's the kind of initiative this is.
Oh, and since it's New Year's, please enjoy some kamaboko.
Thank you.

Text: Nagaaki Onoe

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"KAMABOKO ROAD TO 1000"

Nagaaki Onoe: Dentsu Inc. CDC / Planner & Illustrator

Hayato Akita: Dentsu Inc., Creative Planning Division 3 / Copywriter

Tatsuro Usui: Dentsu Inc., Creative Planning Division 3 / Art Director

Naoki Hayasaka: Dentsu Inc., Creative Planning Division 3 / Copywriter