"Nostalgia is a double-edged sword": how Dolmio revived its beloved puppet family for a new generation
(Image credit: Dolmio/Elmwood) Copy link Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter As part of its 40th anniversary, Dolmio has revived its iconic puppet family. After a 10-year hiatus, the reintroduction…
Annons
Annons
(Image credit: Dolmio/Elmwood) Copy link Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter As part of its 40th anniversary, Dolmio has revived its iconic puppet family. After a 10-year hiatus, the reintroduction of these familiar faces is both a return to tactile branding and a welcome nostalgia trip for fans.Starring in some of the best adverts of the 2000s, the Dolmio family carries quite the legacy for the brand. In a world of social-first branding and AI slop advertising, Dolmio's return to form is an ingenious response to audiences that are growing increasingly hungry for human-led design.To understand more about the Dolmio family's grand return, I caught up with Kyle Whybrow, ECD at Elmwood London, to understand the value of nostalgia and the art of reviving brand heritage.Latest Videos FromCreative BloqWatch full video here: (Image credit: Dolmio/Elmwood)What was the origin of the Dolmio puppets?The Dolmio brand and family were both born in Australia. Dolmio started life as a single bolognese sauce in a glass jar, and its success saw it grow into an established brand reaching wider markets, including the UK. Papa and Mama were originally cast as actors, then reimagined as handcrafted puppet characters in 2003, with the wider family joining them: Sophia, Carlo, Nina and Nico. The idea behind them was simple and very human: the noisy, loving chaos of a family sitting down to eat together. In the UK, ‘When’s your Dolmio Day?’ turned a jar of sauce into a family ritual. They weren’t mascots bolted onto a product. They were the brand’s personality, given a face.
