Åkestam Holst Creates Entire Italian ‘80s Pop Culture Universe to Sell Swedish Cinnamon Buns

In Sweden, Cinnamon Bun Day is a thing – as the country widely celebrates this beloved pastry on October 4th. To secure both buzz and sales, Sweden’s largest convenience store chain Prezzburoni (otherwise Pressbyrån) went all-in on '80s Italo-disco. 

Åkestam Holst NoA created cinnamon bun-friendly versions of classic Italian brands such as Dolce & Gabbana, Valentino and Roberto Cavalli, channeling the '80's signature-tricks-of-the-trade.

Daniel Vaccino, creative director at Åkestam Holst, on the OOH executions, said, “We ignored the fact that Swedish cinnamon buns have nothing in common with '80s Italian fashion. As a matter of fact, we embraced it. The idea was to sell something cheap in the most expensive way possible.” 

The agency also added a layer of pure fiction to the campaign, creating half a million views in just days - for a live-performance-clip from disco-duo 'P. Buroni'. The video was presented as a nostalgic gem from the 1980s Italian tv show VAI. Only, it wasn´t.

The film was actually shot three weeks ago by Åkestam Holst NoA with director Christoffer Von Reis at Von Film, using legit '80s technology to re-create the authentic vintage broadcast look. 

Joakim Khoury, creative director and producer of the song, explains, “Shooting and editing on old broadcast gear was great. None of the control, but all the analog noise. In the end it was worth it, just to capture those perfect imperfections of '80s live TV.” 

Åkestam Holst NoA created an entire Italian '80s pop-cultural universe for the campaign. The fictional band P. Buroni comes equipped with a made-up record company with its very own imaginary roster of '80s Italian acts – including names such as Spazzze, Falcone Primera and 61-Controler. 

Joakim Khoury talks about how Åkestam Holst NoA really went down the rabbit hole, for this one. “On a top level, it´s just a fun way of saying Cinnamon Buns for $1, but there is a lot of stuff going on under that. Hopefully people will be intrigued enough to spend some time on the campaign. Regardless, a think a dash of confusion is always a nice ingredient.” 

One thing that´s not made-up in this year’s campaign, is the distribution of the song. The Radio-Edit of 'Bullatella Cannelle' is currently climbing charts on multiple streaming platforms - and has been re-mixed by Norwegian artist Prins Thomas. Also, a Limited-Edition Vinyl will be released in celebration of the big day itself, cinnamon bun day on October 4th.