On the heels of its recent BeaverTails crossover and Mac and Cheesecake collaborations, Kraft Dinner is back with its latest innovation, KD Ramen.
The brand’s latest team-up, this time with 7-Eleven Canada, will give Canadians an exclusive first taste of KD Ramen before it rolls out nationwide in retail later this summer. Available in Cheesy Ramen, Extra Cheesy and Extra Spicy flavours, the LTO will be available June 25 to June 27 from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. at select locations in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Winnipeg.
“With KD Ramen, we’re bringing that iconic KD cheesiness to an entirely new aisle and occasion,” says Kraft Heinz Canada CMO Kelly Fleming. “It’s a bold new way for Canadians to experience the flavour they know and love.”
A promotional hero spot by Rethink taps into the atmosphere of late-night convenience-store snack runs, complete with buzzing fluorescent signage. According to Geoff Baillie, the shop’s partner and group creative director, the new product gave it an opportunity to redefine what the brand means to Canadians.
“We wanted to build on what Canadians already love about KD while introducing something new and fresh,” Baillie says.
Image courtesy of Kraft Heinz
To tease the launch, KD Ramen is reimagining 7-Eleven Canada’s colours in KD blue and yellow across social channels before unveiling a launch GIF and OLV. The campaign will then expand with product-focused creative and paid media across social and Twitch. Supported by Salt XC, KD Ramen will also come to life through experiential sampling at participating 7-Eleven Canada locations. Carat is the media buyer and Zeno Group is supporting on PR efforts.
Social-first creative will be supported by influencer partnerships and earned media programming, alongside French-language creative and paid media support in Québec.
On the retail front, the campaign will roll out nationwide in grocery, convenience and big-box retailers with English and French point-of-sale materials, featuring a hero bowl of KD Ramen.
The launch comes as demand for instant noodles continues to grow across North America. Fortune Business Insights forecasted the instant-ramen noodle market to grow by 5.97% from 2024 to 2032 driven by the demand for ethnic flavours and convenience. Other research by Mordor Intelligence, pegs Canada as the fastest growing region for pasta and instant noodles overall.
