When Georgina Met Rajeev.
Holsten made Georgina Rodríguez its face in Saudi Arabia and built a campaign on a seeded rumour that she drops into a neighbourhood baqala for her Holsten, ending with her surprise appearance in a film shot in Riyadh.
- Brand
- Holsten
- Agency
- M+C Saatchi Group
- Market
- Saudi Arabia
- Region
- Saudi Arabia
- Year
- 2025
The challenge
Holsten, a non-alcoholic malt drink, was seen as something you open only for big achievements. The brand wanted it to feel like an everyday treat without losing its premium image.
The idea
Under the line "Treat Yourself with a Holsten", the story ran as organic buzz before the hero film, set around a baqala and its characters, including Rajeev. It rolled out on Shahid, TikTok, Meta, cinemas and outdoor, and was extended into Saudi National Day 2025 with a sampling activation at Riyadh Boulevard.
Results
- M+C Saatchi Group's case page says the National Day extension handed out 18,000 samples.
- Carlsberg Group's marketing manager for MEA told Communicate the three-day Riyadh Boulevard activation gave out more than 21,000 bottles and engaged over 75,000 visitors.
Case study source: M+C Saatchi Group Source ↗
Awards
- Effie Awards Saudi Arabia 2026Influencer MarketingSilver
Credits
- Creative agency and PR
- M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Media agency
- Dentsu
- Production
- BOHO Films
- Marketing Manager MEA, Carlsberg Group
- Dorothea Drews
- Brand Manager, Carlsberg Group
- Sally Shin
- International Commercial Graduate, Carlsberg Group
- Olivia Wiklund
- Chief Creative Officer, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Ryan Reed
- Group Managing Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Natalie Cooke Tombs
- Executive Creative Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Dario Albuquerque
- Head of Strategy, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Mark Haycock
- Strategist, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Samar Mustafa
- Creative Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Bilel Labjaoui
- Creative Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Jarrad Pitts
- Senior Creative, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Zainab Yasseen
- Senior Creative, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Mahmoud Gahallah
- Art Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Ahmed Mansour
- Copywriter, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Ahmed Bahaa
- Business Lead, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Rasha Lambe
- Account Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Katie Dumbrell
- Account Executive, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Seran Dilshan
- Social Media Executive, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Ahmed Magdy
- Head of Production, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Ananda Swanepoel
- Producer, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Stella Violla
- Senior Editor, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Jose Romualdez
- Animator, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Rami Al Ekhlasi
- Head of PR, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Rashmi Jeetendra
- PR Account Director, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Alaa Salameh
- PR Account Manager, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Sydney Miranda
- PR Account Executive, M+C Saatchi Group Middle East
- Renad Nahfawi
- Media Director, Dentsu
- Claire Peach
- Media Manager, Dentsu
- Aya Daher
- Senior Performance Executive, Dentsu
- Elissa Khalil
- Media Planning Executive, Dentsu
- Anji Toutounji
- Executive Producer, BOHO Films
- Vania Aoun
- Line Producer, BOHO Films
- Samah Obeid
- Director
- Shank
- Director
- Omar El Zohairy
- Photographer
- Ahmed Othman
