Benjamin Moore targets TikTok with household objects in love with its paint

Benjamin Moore, founded in 1883, is one of those legacy brands that usually adopts an earnest tone in its advertising. But now it’s shaking things up in a campaign from the agency Fig that’s whimsical, musical and squarely aimed at younger audiences on TikTok and Instagram.

Two spots breaking today promote a reformulated version of the brand’s signature paint—the Regal Select Interior line. The concept is that it’s not just homeowners who love Regal—the everyday household objects that stare at the walls—all day, every day—love it as well.

One spot, starring a black-cat wall clock, is set to a rewritten version of Christina Aguilera’s “What a Girl Wants.” Here, it’s “What a Wall Wants”—and the meow callback parts are especially purrrfect.

“At its core, people’s relationship with Regal paint is really a love story,” Asan Aslam, executive creative director at Fig, told Ad Age. “But who spends even more time at home than you do? There’s some competition in this love story from these lovestruck objects.”

A second spot features a marble bust who’s so enamored by his Regal surroundings that he recites a poem in their honor—and even has trouble staying upright by the end.

The clock spot, in particular, was designed specifically with TikTok and Instagram Reels in mind. Benjamin Moore is ready to embrace a more fun-loving side that’s a bit less serious than how the brand has promoted itself in the past.

“What’s interesting is, it’s kind of a classic brief. They have this amazing product that people love, and they’ve made it even better,” said Aslam. “But we went about it with a new attitude. We’re taking this classic, wonderful, iconic brand and modernizing it and reinvigorating it—going after a new audience in new spaces and redefining how a premium brand acts.” 

“Regal Select has been the go-to for painters and homeowners alike for more than 60 years, and now it performs even better than before thanks to its enhanced formula,” said Meredith Kinsman, VP of brand and digital marketing at Benjamin Moore. “In keeping with our focus on storytelling through emotion, these new spots enable us to highlight not just the aesthetics but the function of the product; the innovative technology that makes for a more beautiful, more durable paint. Through the ‘Lovestruck Objects’ creative, the team at Fig worked hand-in-hand with our experts to tell that story in a way that is irreverent, well-crafted and memorable.”

The project was produced through Fig Studios, the agency’s production arm, on what Aslam said was a modest budget. The 3D artist and animator Steven Baltay (creator of some truly funky NFTs indeed) made the CGI cat and the statue, while Nix + Gerber created miniature sets (they couldn’t afford life-size ones). The director was Evan Mann.

The campaign will be running in the U.S. and Canada in paid and organic social. Aslam said this work marks the start of a larger commitment from Benjamin Moore on TikTok in particular. Indeed, he said the agency is currently at work on a whole TikTok series for the brand. Benjamin Moore currently has 37,600 followers on TikTok.

“An iconic brand like Benjamin Moore really should be influencing home transformations,” he said. “And if that's the case, we need to be in places where people are inspired and hanging out, and do it in a way that's true to who we are but is more multi-faceted—more fun, more agile, less serious. That’s how we got to this work, and it’s the beginning of something bigger.”