Nestlé - cHOCOLATE ABUELITA

THE PROBLEM WORTH SOLVING

Chocolate Abuelita releases limited-edition cups every Day of the Dead, but in a market where every brand activates the same holiday, the collectibles were at risk of becoming interchangeable. The challenge: give this year's edition a story worth keeping, not just a design worth buying.

THE INSIGHT THAT UNLOCKED IT

Day of the Dead in Mexico isn't about death, that’s too obvious by now. It's about the specific, irreplaceable presence of people who are gone. Grandparents, in particular, occupy a unique cultural space: the keepers of recipes, rituals and language. The insight: Abuelita isn't named after a brand character. It's named after yours. The cup isn't a collectible. It's a portrait of the person who made the hot chocolate.

WHAT I DID

Led the cultural and narrative strategy for the campaign, defined the storytelling territory, developed the creative brief, and shaped how the grandparent insight was translated into the design narrative and supporting campaign content. Ensured the strategy connected product ritual (the warmth of hot chocolate) with cultural ritual (Day of the Dead remembrance) without sentimentality overwhelming the brand.

THE IDEA IT BECAME

A limited edition built around grandparents as the living archive of family traditions, the people who pass down recipes, stories and love through ritual. The cups became portraits, not illustrations. Each one a specific act of remembrance, not a generic holiday design.

WHAT HAPPENED

• Limited-edition cups sold out within two weeks of launch

• Campaign deepened Chocolate Abuelita's positioning as a brand inseparable from Mexican family heritage

• Storytelling framework established as the model for future seasonal limited-edition strategy