Milk Campaign Offers Moms a Gulp of Reality

MilkPEP and GALE have launched a new campaign, 'How It Started' tapping into a popular TikTok trend to highlight the comical realities of motherhood. The socially driven campaign - developed by an all-mom team - is a continuation of the brand’s 'Mom Com' initiative, which utilises humour to support the mission of modern moms to keep their kids healthy and strong.

'How It Started' plays up the popular TikTok trend 'How it started . . . how it’s going,' which contrasts the beginning of something with its current outcome. For this campaign, the transformation is positive, illustrating how milk fuels kids’ progress. In three comical scenarios, 'how it started' is that one kid is struggling in karate class, and another is small for his age, for instance. Then, after regularly gulping down milk, we see 'how it’s going' as they thrive, getting stronger and excelling in their activities or reaching the size of the mom. Each of the three vignettes touts the benefits of milk–building strong muscles, helping kids grow, and helping support healthy sleep.

MilkPEP and GALE have teamed up with powerhouse comedians, including Whitney Cummings and Alyce Chan, for social media content to support the campaign. Whitney - famous for her TV shows and stand-up specials - will create content about milk as a must-have in the chaos of mom life. Whitney is known for her unfiltered style, and that trademark tone will continue for this campaign as she captures how milk has become essential to motherhood. 

MilkPEP CEO Yin Woon Rani says of the campaign, “Being a mom is serious business, but every mom deserves a good laugh to lighten the load and feel understood. ‘How It Started’ fulfils that need with vignettes that show the often-comical realities of motherhood–all while showing how both moms and kids can reap the many rewards of milk.”

“The campaign uses humour to highlight the benefits of drinking milk. And everything we do must live in a social environment, so we effectively aim to create entertainment, not ads,” says GALE managing director, creative, Geoff Edwards.

The ads were directed by Bonnie Dennison and Alison Barton and produced by Good Times - the duo has worked with Liquid Death, Amazon, and Wendy’s, among others. The campaign will continue through the end of the year. It will be featured on social media, including TikTok, Meta, YouTube, Pinterest, and Snapchat, as well as audio, CTV, and cinema spots.