Campaigns for brands including Barakat, Castrol, Palm Hills Developments, and Saudi Telecom are among the eight winners of this year’s WARC Prize for MENA Strategy, a search for the most innovative marketing thinking that has driven results in the Middle East and North Africa. 

The jury panel of ten leading client- and agency-side industry experts chaired by Lianne Braganza, Chief Marketing Officer, Middle East and Africa of Cigna, have awarded one Grand Prix, one Gold, three Silver, and three Bronze awards.

The UAE leads with four awards, followed by Saudi Arabia with three and Egypt with one. The Grand Prix has been awarded to Havas Middle East, Dubai, for the Read The Label campaign for the local fresh juice brand Barakat. 

To drive mass awareness of the importance of reading and to understand the labels of products to combat unhealthy lifestyles and poor eating habits, Barakat redesigned its bottles, invited shoppers to #ReadTheLabel, created digital banners for e-commerce and a brand film, which aired in cinemas, leveraged influencers, and hosted a live session on Instagram with a certified nutritionist.

The campaign generated a 4m reach, a 105% increase in social interactions, a 14% sales increase, and 80% of people exposed to the campaign plan to read labels in the future.

Commenting on their Grand Prix win, Fabio Silveira, General Manager, Havas Middle East, said: “Creating meaningful campaigns based on effective strategies is what we thrive on. I am proud of our team for this big win and for adding yet another Grand Prix to our 2022 winning streak, and I am grateful to our clients for their trust in our creative vision and our work.” 

The WARC Prize for MENA Strategy 2022 winners are:

Grand Prix

  • Read the Label · Barakat · Havas Middle East, Dubai

Gold

  • Castrol’s Portraits of Glory · Castrol · VMLY&R, Dubai

Silver

  • Ending Virginity Tests · M.A.L.I. · TBWA\RAAD, Dubai
  • Meet Sarha · STC · Wunderman Thompson, Riyadh
  • Every Story Has a Beginning · Palm Hills Developments · FP7 McCann, Cairo

Bronze

  • The Unexpected Re-Route · STC · Wunderman Thompson, Riyadh
  • Blast to the Past · HungerStation · Wunderman Thompson, Riyadh
  • The Original Taste · Jibnet Abu Al Walad · Havas Middle East, Dubai

An insights report deep-diving into the themes and lessons of the winning work will be published at the end of February.