Why This Sustainable Billboard Is Smyle Worthy
As a sustainable brand, how do you advertise in a way that aligns with your brand values? Well, dental care manufacturer Smyle worked with Fitzroy to achieve just that, a sustainable billboard with a powerful message. It read: ‘Just like our product, this billboard doesn’t leave microplastics or trash’ – the kicker, it was beautifully etched into the sand on a beach.
Created by sand artist Tim Hoekstra, the billboard’s lettering was accompanied by the brand logo, bottle and a toothbrush to match. Taking just under eight hours to complete and measuring a staggering 1200 square metres, the team had to specifically scout IJmuiden beach in the Netherlands to fit the width of the creation. Although the team describe how the wind and scale of the piece proved tricky, in the end, the ‘Wash Away Billboard’ rode the wave of success.
To explain how they created a 100% sustainable billboard, Smyle’s founder Almar Fernhout and Fitzroy’s creative partner Mischa Schreuder speak with LBB’s Nisna Mahtani.
LBB> When did your partnership with Smyle begin and what did the brand want to achieve?
Mischa> We started a month ago. We are doing a lot for brands that are doing good, such as Naïf, Stoov, Yumeko, GoBoony and Cordaid. We saw a great product in Smyle and approached them to see how we could help them grow the brand. The first piece of work next to the strategy was the ‘Wash Away Billboard’.
The brand wanted to communicate that there is an alternative to toothpaste in a plastic tube. The tube is not necessary anymore, plus toothpaste without microplastics is better for nature – and your teeth!
LBB> Tell us a little bit about the brand’s commitment to sustainability.
Almar> 95% of the toothpaste still comes in plastic tubes, which creates 1.2 million kilograms of plastic every year in the Netherlands alone.
Smyle delivers excellent oral care without plastic packaging and the toothpaste tabs don’t contain microplastics. They work with a glass-made storage bottle and sustainable paper refill sachets.
LBB> How did Smyle’s collaboration with sand artist Tim Hoekstra first come about?
Mischa> We had a lot of ideas and one of them was to create a 100% clean billboard in the sand. In the Netherlands, there are a hand full of great sand artists and Tim Hoekstra is one of the most famous. We approached Tim and he believed in Smyle and loved the idea. Two weeks later, Tim was making the 1200 square metre billboard.
LBB> Can you tell us a little bit about what you wanted to create and how you and Tim worked together on this sustainable billboard?
Mischa> We wanted to create a huge billboard that was 100% sustainable. The ‘Wash Away Billboard’ remained in the sand for a couple of hours and after filming everything, the sea washed the billboard away. Because we filmed everything, we reached a lot of people in The Netherlands and all over the world. The film was even picked up on a lot of blogs and news channels, both national and international.
LBB> The lettering on the sand has so much character and the accompanying toothbrush and toothpaste image are striking. What are some of the techniques used to achieve this and how long did it take?
Mischa> Tim Hoekstra only used a rake to sketch out the brand’s lettering and used his creative skills to make this beautiful drawing.
He started at 2 pm when it was low tide and finished a bit before 8 pm when it was high tide. It was a race against the clock to finish the whole billboard including the bottle he had to make. At 7:40 pm, the drawing was done. So it took him more than seven hours and 40 mins to create the whole billboard.
The drawing was 30x40 meters, so we could only do it at IJmuiden beach because the beach is so wide there. We had to ask people to walk around the drawing.
LBB> There’s something beautiful about the waves washing over the writing and imagery. How did you coordinate to get this shot but also ensure you had time to finish the piece before the tide came in?
Mischa> We asked Tim how much time he needed. Also, he prepared how he would start and how big the letters would be. We were not sure if we could make the bottle on time, but Tim made it happen. The imagery was prepared also with two cameras and a drone. So we knew we would have all the shots.
The planning beforehand with Tim and the cameraman was the most important part.
LBB> What was the most challenging part of the campaign?
Mischa> The wind. When we created the letters it started to blow, and sand dust was blowing all over the billboard. The dust would land on the letters so some letters were getting more white than others. On the beach itself, you could read everything perfectly, but on the drone shots, some letters were more difficult to read. Then we went with the camera from left to right instead of right to left and because of the sun, you could see it perfectly. So in the end, nature helped us.
LBB> How about the most rewarding?
Mischa> The most rewarding part was the shot where the water touched the logo of Smyle and the sunshine was highlighting the logo, that was the money shot we only could only dream of.
LBB> What have the responses from the audience been like so far?
Mischa> Only positive reactions from all over the world, from the USA to China, Sweden and the Netherlands of course. Blogs are picking it up and news channels too. It’s fresh and new, and for a good cause. People think that it’s brilliant, so the message is clear for people.
LBB> What would you like people to take away from this campaign?
Almar> I hope people start using toothpaste tabs, so they clean their teeth without plastics and microplastics. Once you start with it, you will never go back. No waste and a perfect Smyle for you and mother nature.
Product innovations that remove plastic from the supply chain are a warm welcome in the wall of plastics that you see in big retail. Smyle proves that a really good product doesn’t need plastic. Over 500 dentists are sampling products, even though they are very concerned about the amount of plastic they use.
Brushing with a tab should become the new standard!
