Furn Obeid, Labor Day with a lovely jab!

What do Zaatar w Zeit, the Lebanese Bakery and Furn Beaino have in common? Well, they are all competitors to Furn Obeid. And since today is Labor Day, Furn Obeid decided "we want to rest today so order from...." - yes, the competitors. Because eventually, loyal clients always come back. Lovely, lovely jab! Not to be mean or steal their thunder but it does remind me of the 2014 Shawarmanji Halloween trick (which was done in reverse, i.e. dipping the Shwarmanji logo in that of the competitors) - see below.... To be clear, both are incredibly smart and well-done.

Zaatar w Zeit goes spicy.

Source

We are a far cry from Fattoush pas a mon pote, but again, different times, different audiences, different ways of talking. Spicy is in fashion, well, the ad is very correct when it comes to art direction - red is indeed spicy in terms of colors (and appetite-opening - also a known fact), the model stands her ground in terms of self-confidence. "Savor our new items collection" - as if they have a clothing brand as opposed to a food and beverage chain. Does the ad work? Apparently many people still flock to Zaatar w Zeit, not just older clients but also youngsters as well. So I guess some of them will try those spicy new menu additions.

For good measure, below is the classic Fattoush ad - dated 2010. Before the logo update by Nineteen84.

Al Abdalla nukes Zaatar w Zeit on its home turf

Remember the Sandwich w Noss vs Beit Al Mokhtar saga (where Sandwich w Noss acting very petty? here), well we have a new saga developing between Zaatar w Zeit and Al Abdalla. Right bang on top of the ZWZ branch, AlAbdalla announces that "the fanciest chicken in right across" (where AlAbdalla branch is facing ZWZ on the highway). Now seriously, I hope ZWZ comes up with a funny/witty answer other than complaining to Facebook as Sandwich w Noss did. But hey, at least some life on the advertising scene in Lebanon! Do note that Kababji previously took the same spot and advertised above Zaatar w Zeit, when I notified them they answered very smartly with their selling line "love, regardless" (here).

Zaatar w Zeit goes exploring (where others preceded it).

Zaatar w Zeit has a gorgeous new ad.

Imagine this: A bunch of youth go and become adventurers in Lebanon and discover its beauty (and forget that this is the exact same scenario Byblos Bank used, as well as Almaza and countless other brands probably using the same VW Camper van). 

OK, Zaatar w Zeit does play for its audience, uppity well-to-do Gen Z boys and girls shielded from the current financial crisis by their parents and who somehow think that a Manoushe at this price is the norm (it is not). But to be fair to Zaatar w Zeit, they know their audience, they know what they like and how they behave, heck, they even included a guitar campfire night (hello Crepaway!) and a dog for a good measure (you know the kind that offers "fresh" Dollars if it is ever gone astray).

Just to be clear, the ad targets exactly who it wants to target, it is well shot, beautiful, and emotionally resonates with the people it wants to resonate with. Has it been already done elsewhere? Yes. Is it full of cliches? It is. Will it matter? Well, some youth are already planning that campfire with some uber expensive juice bottles.

See the full ad here.

Back when Zaatar w Zeit used to do excellent Ramadan ads

For those who got upset about me being less than lukewarm about the Ramadan ads please look at this Zaatar W Zeit (ZWZ for short) masterpiece as a reference. Remember, sou7our is the pre-dawn breakfast. There, locked and sealed. Any questions? The sample above dates to 2010! My eyes, my eyes....