BSI Awards | Case Library | Nestlé Vietnam – KitKat | KITKAT BREAK EQUITY 2025 - HAVE A PHONEBREAK, HAVE A KITKAT

CASE STUDY VIDEO

STRATEGY

The global research unveils that Gen Z nowaday know the break is essential for them to keep going , yet 60% feel like they don't take enough break and 64% can not switch their mind off, still overactive while taking break. The uncovered tension revealed: Gen Z don’t lack breaks but their breaks are broken. KitKat - the iconic chocolate bar behind the legendary “Have a Break, Have a Kitkat” — has long been a reminder to pause. But as Gen Z’s breaks are increasingly under attack, the challenge became: how can KitKat evolve from simply reminding breaks to actively protecting it? KitKat understands that Gen Z lives on social media—even during their breaks. Meanwhile during consuming content, they highly skeptical of brand voices but inspired by real voices and social allies who live inside their “social bubble” and speak their language. To stay relevant, the brand placed a bold bet on a social-first campaign: not advertising breaks, but entering Gen Z’s micro “broken break” moments and co-piloting with cultural insiders to rebuild break culture. KitKat adopted disruptive approaches to turn the campaign into a true social movement - one Gen Z would willingly participate in via inviting native voices, not one narrated by the brand.

1. TRANSFORM INFLUENCER ROLE FROM AMPLIFIER TO ACTIVATOR WITH CULTURE-LED IMPACT SEGMENTATION

To make the campaign natively spreadable, KitKat didn’t let the brand speak for itself. Instead, we brought in true social culture insiders to lead the conversation in Gen Z’s language with two segments: Break Masters who has the strong cultural forces and recognition with the persuasive and inspiring voice among gen Z to reframe the tension. Hence, no better leaders than Cò Lõ — an organically rising icon of work-life moments, first tapped by KitKat to maximize cultural impact — and Duy Khánh — Gen Z’s sharpest witty voice — to call out the “broken break” and reset the movement with KitKat. Break Buddies - witty natives across entertainment, office life, and Gen Z lifestyle who step into micro break moments and hijack them through their native social expressions (Con Cò Đây, Thiện Khiêm, Ngòng Ngọc, Anbidien, Đồng Thuỳ Dung... along with Gen Z communities and Threads citizens)

2. REVAMP CREATOR COLLABORATION WITH FREEDOM OF CONTENT EXPRESSION

To deliver the KitKat “Better Break” movement in the most authentic way, we erased the line between brand voice and creator voice. For the first time, KitKat took a break itself by handing over its brand fanpage to Break master, turning it into a playground for unexpected and standout social activations. For Break buddies, Kitkat didn’t script them but trusted them by giving full creative freedom for TikTok-native expression - letting each creator reinterpret Kitkat break ritual in their own tone, humor, and rhythm because culture can’t be copy-pasted.

3. INITIATE THE BREAK MOVEMENT FROM STORYTELLING TO STORYDOING

KitKat didn’t stop at inviting Break Masters to inspire but also co-create with them to launch the first-ever break wearable merchandise, turning the idea into a public statement that sparked massive discussion, participation, and a craze for the hunt.

4. FIRST BRAND TO BUILD UP SOCIAL CONTAGIOUS INDEX METRICS TO MEASURE CREATOR CONTENT EFFECTIVENESS

In Gen Z’s social ecosystem, performance metrics don’t equal cultural impact. KitKat developed the Social Contagious Index (SCI) , a proprietary metric combining View Rate (scroll-stopping power) and Engagement Rate (participation) to identify effective content that drove cultural traction for realtime optimization.

INSIGHT

To bring the strategy to life, KitKat needed an insight rooted in Gen Z’s real behavior. Gen Z lives on their phones. It’s where they socialize, entertain themselves, and even take their breaks. But the same screen that promises escape is also disturbed with notifications, deadlines, expectations, social comparison, and endless scrolling. What should be a moment to pause quickly turns into another stream of interruptions. Instead of restoring energy, their “breaks” often trap them deeper inside the same overwhelming digital loop they were trying to escape from. The very place they go to rest is also the place that drains them. They need someone to help protect it.

CREATIVE IDEA

The path for KitKat to win Gen Z is clear: show up exactly where their breaks are being lost — on the screen. So instead of competing with endless scrolling, KitKat interrupts it by social-first movement that appears right inside Gen Z’s screen time - wittily asking them them to pause, step away from their phones, and reclaim a real break with KitKat. From this, the idea was born: NGHỈ XẢ HƠI – RỜI ĐIỆN THOẠI – XƠI KITKAT Have a break. Away from phone. Have a KitKat. To bring the idea to life in a way that resonates with Gen Z, KitKat chose a clear role: a co-pilot, not a narrator. KitKat doesn’t lecture about digital detox. It doesn’t deny the reality of screen culture. And it doesn’t pretend it can change Gen Z’s lives. Instead, KitKat protects the break and help the world break better. By placing a simple ritual at the exact moment breaks start to slip away, KitKat helps people step back, reset their mood, and return with a lighter perspective because sometimes the better break is simply putting the phone down and snapping a KitKat.

CONNECTION PLAN

KitKat didn’t unfold the campaign phase by phase. It ignited one movement that kept escalating across social. For the first time, KitKat made a bold move: announcing that the brand itself was taking a break, and inviting the world to find the true Social Break Master to take over its channels. The mission for those who dare to take it was simple: co-pilot with Gen Z and prove that breaks are worth protecting. Soon after, Cò Lõ - a rising cultural character among Gen Z stepped in. In his first-ever collaboration with a brand, he officially took over the KitKat fanpage, claiming his sovereignty and transforming the page into his playground, flooding it with brutally honest Gen Z language. First, Cò Lõ ignited conversations by calling out the nightmare of broken breaks through content series like “Tuyển Tập Ác Mộng Giờ Nghỉ Trưa,” rescuing Gen Z from their most relatable break disasters. Then came the second move, Cò Lõ dropped bold statements defending downtime, turning breaks into something worth speaking up for — in his unmistakable voice: “Sofaaaa so good.” “Ăn chưa no lo bị sếp gọi.” These weren’t just jokes. They were casting calls for allies — the Break Lover Club. The break rebellion had just begun. Shouting wasn’t enough. Cò Lõ made the movement wearable, launching the first-ever Break Protection T-Shirt Collection. To amplify the drop, Cò Lõ invited his trusted ally Duy Khánh — sharing the same spirit, humor, and Gen Z language — to help unveil the collection. This time, Cò Lõ took a short break himself, temporarily handing the power to Duy Khánh to spark the noise across his fandom community where the merchandise spread rapidly and host the hunt minigame through fanpage and fandom minigames. The noise also rippled further as Break Buddies joined in naming: Con Cò Đây, Thiện Khiêm, Ngòng Ngọc, Anbidien, Đồng Thuỳ Dung... along with Gen Z communities and Threads citizens spreading the T-shirts and their bold statements across social media, turning personal posts into public break declarations. What started as one voice quickly became a wave. Hundreds joined the hunt. Over 600 community participations followed. And true to his unpredictable nature, Cò Lõ never lets the world get boring. After awarding the winners, he officially returned the fanpage to KitKat, ending the takeover after a well-deserved break. The campaign became proof of how KitKat transformed its social presence making a daring move that shook the platform with authenticity and surprise. More importantly, it fulfilled KitKat’s promise to Gen Z: When breaks are under attack, KitKat will protect them at all costs.

OBJECTIVE-BASE KPI

[1] objective: Drive cultural talkability through creator contagiousness | platform: TikTok/ Facebook | metrics: Social Contagious Index (SCI) | kpi: Build and apply a proprietary metric to identify and amplify creator content with the strongest cultural spread potential | result: 9.7 | compare_with_benchmark: +50% vs. brand assets alone | source: Internal campaign dashboard

[6] objective: Build KitKat brand relevance through more ad recall | platform: TikTok/ Facebook | metrics: Ad Recall | kpi: Increase campaign memorability and recall among audiences exposed to the movement | result: +10.8% | compare_with_benchmark: vs. pre-campaign baseline | source: Media/platform reports

KITKAT BREAK EQUITY 2025 - HAVE A PHONEBREAK, HAVE A KITKAT

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