2025 Cannes Lions
Outdoor / Culture & Context
Silver
Balikbayan Magic
Bringing the Filipino Christmas tradition of giving into the national spotlight.
Client: The Coca-Cola Company
Office: Toronto, Canada
Coca-Cola believes in bringing holiday magic to the world. But in a country as diverse as Canada, Christmas looks different for everyone. Toronto alone is home to over 200,000 Filipinos. Many send big gift boxes known as Balikbayan boxes back to their families in the Philippines. But shipping costs were rising. We created “Real Magic” by creating custom boxes with shipping covered and turned a cultural moment into national relevance by sharing the Filipino tradition of Balikbayan with Canada.
The Balikbayan tradition holds deep meaning for Filipino families, and the response to the program over the past two years made it clear how impactful this initiative is. Extending the program for a third year allows us to continue supporting a cultural practice that brings joy, generosity and connection across distances.
For 95 years, Santa Claus has been part of Coca-Cola's holiday campaign. But in a country as diverse as Canada, Christmas looks different for everyone and cultural traditions play an important role in the magic of the season.
Flipino-Canadians represent one of the Canada's largest and fastest-growing immigrant communities. Toronto alone is home to 200,000 Filipinos. They celebrate Christmas through a deeply cherished tradition: sending gift big boxes, Balikbayan boxes, to their loves ones in the Philippines. These boxes symbolized the deep bond between Filipinos living overseas and their families, showing how they stay connected to their culture as they build their lives in Canada. However, the magic of the holiday tradition is under threat due to rising shipping costs.
Coca-Cola used the Canadian maple leaf and the Filipino sun to create custom-designed Balikbayan boxes with all shipping costs included, so that Filipino-Canadians could send more gifts back home, instead of paying specialist shipping companies hundreds of dollars.
This three-year program yielded exceptional results, demonstrating that genuine connection drives success. "Cares about my culture" soared to 92% (a 40-point increase), "Brand Relevance" reached 91% and "Purchase Intent" hit 94%, significantly outperforming the general population. Demand for the custom boxes was overwhelming, with all units claimed within the first week each year. Coca-Cola didn't just celebrate a Filipino tradition. It became a part of it.
2025 Campaign Agency of the Year
Out of Home/ Print
Winner
2025 Marketing Awards
Multicultural - Holiday/Seasonal Advertising
Multicultural - Out-of-home
Multicultural - Experiential/Special Events/Stunts
Gold
2025 Strategy Awards
Multicultural´Strategy
Gold
2025 The Drum Awards
Experiential: Community-Focused
Gold
2025 Atomic Awards
Niche Targeting
Gold
Press
Coca-Cola Canada Embraces Filipino Tradition with Third Year of Balikbayan
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Coca-Cola takes Balikbayan platform on family-reunion journey
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