Posted on: September 29th, 2009 by Jeremy Jackson Sytner

Last Saturday while walking down the King’s Road – as you do – I saw a Black and White whisky ad on a London bus side. Quickly followed, in true bus fashion, by another with the same ad.

Wow I thought, a new retro style ad for Black and White whisky.

The ad featured the iconic faces of a black Scottish terrier and a West Highland white terrier alongside the brand name in a currently cool distressed typeface and all in a restrained black, white and red colour on white.

In an ever busy world of over art directed media noise it stood out like the dog’s proverbials. Understated, elegant and impactful.

A timeless piece of design and branding indeed, until I noticed the buses were classic Routemasters decked out with white ribbon and heading off to collect a wedding party.

I’d been duped. No uber cool relaunch of a classic brand here. Just a piece of advertising dug up to add to patina of a 1940’s red bus.

Advertising history it might be, but what a powerful lesson in branding. Apparently, the father of this enduring marque was James Buchanan, an ardent animal lover, who in the 1890s, returning from a dog show, conceived the logo for one of the world’s most famous trademarks.

Now I’m no whisky connoisseur, I enjoy the occasionally whisky and soda – long with masses of ice – a drowned whisky I think they call it, so I can’t claim to be in the market for this product, but I’m pretty sure that if Diageo were to relaunch Black and White whisky in the UK today, with that campaign, they’d have a big sales success on their hands.

How come? Well the ads I was drooling over didn’t have an ‘intriguing’ headline, a mesmerizing endline or even a James Bond look-alike in a sharp suit. In short, a planner hadn’t been within a mile of the brief. The only ‘idea’ it had was the original one James Buchanan had over 100 years ago. And as the saying goes, it’s as fresh today as it always was. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the power (and value) of a brand.

This too from a product that’s steeped in its Scotishness. Where are the men in skirts squeezing dead sheep’s bladders, the olde worldy fake Scottish typography or the name of some unpronounceable loch or island? And for Christ’s sake the bloody tartan’s even missing!

Black and White whisky isn’t sold in the UK anymore. (Yes I’m sure you can get in some old pub in the Outer Hebrides. Perhaps I should have said ‘marketed’) It’s kept for those far off territories where consumers aren’t as ‘sophisticated’ as you and I. Countries where a simple graphic yin and yang of lovable pooches has punters buying it by the case.

Bring back simple marketing, I say. And while we’re at it bring back Black and White whisky. Cheers!