Chocapologies

Background

Karim Bourgi is a Lebanese influencer chef, a known name in pastry-making and a famous chocolatier. He is also the owner of a trendy Dubai-based patisserie called Kayu. He wanted to grow his following on social media.

Idea

The internet can aptly be described as the cruellest playground in the world, a place where trolls bully perfect strangers. Karim was no stranger to online hate, having been a target himself. The question he asked was, how could the internet be made a sweeter place? Because chocolate contains endorphins which can reduce pain and lower levels of stress, the answer was to create three 600-gramme bars of chocolate. Each was uniquely designed and hand-crafted with a different theme: hate messaging, cyber bullying and body shaming.

The moulds were more intricate and more detailed than any food moulds made before. These Chocapologies were sent to influencers, celebrities and gamers. They were encouraged to share their own stories on Instagram of how and when the internet owed them an apology and, using the hashtag #Sugarcoatit, spread love for the victims of trolling. On the Chocapologies page, anyone who has been trolled was invited to ‘DM us why the internet owes you an apology and we will send you a Chocapology - on behalf of the internet.’

Results

Karim gained 120,000 new followers on Instagram as well as a 265% increase in engagement. He also gained a lot of popularity beyond Social when the campaign was featured on TV and radio.

Our Thoughts

This is how purpose can help you build a brand out of thin air. Karim doesn’t just own a patisserie in Dubai, he runs a cooking school, he caters for major events and he has a number of other interests. In other words, he’s not that easy to define.

Or at least he wasn’t, until now when he’s acquired fame for using one of his businesses to make a few victims of online spite feel a bit better about it.