Magnum – consistently cracking ice cream moments!

Magnum is one of the most well-known ice cream brands in the world. For more than 25 years it has tantalised the taste buds of fans around the world. 

This blog post will immerse you into the brand origins, the deep consumer insight behind Magnum and how it consistently taps into this insight with its marketing campaigns. This is the story of a brand that moved from being a simple stick to become a symbol of everyday pleasure. 

Magnum was created by Unilever in 1989 in cooperation with the Callebeut a famous Belgian couverture chocolate producer. Both companies came out with a premium ice cream that had the perfect balance of the highest quality chocolate and ice cream pleasure. It was the first hand-held ice cream specially developed for adults. Originally, Magnum was launched under the German Nogger brand. After a few years it transitioned into a stand-alone-brand. 

Magnum aims to attract “pleasure seekers” these are people that are looking for pleasure in their day-to-day. Nowadays, people have busy days full of activities and responsibilities, they don’t have time for themselves. Hereafter, people have the need to unleash their true pleasure and reward themselves. Magnum entice consumers to look for more moments of personal pleasure. This consumer insight travels all over the world and makes of Magnum a popular brand worldwide.

Magnum’s global expansion started in the mid-nineties with its introduction to the US market. The brand positioned itself as an ice cream for adults targeting people with witty & sexual oriented commercials (give a look below to Magnum’s most emblematic ad in the US during the 1980s).

After a successful introduction into the US market, the brand initiated its global expansion with the introduction of Magnum “Seven Deadly sins” ice cream collection (2003). The great success of this marketing stunt paved the way for the brand to launch other famous campaign which consistently built on Magnum’s brand image such as the beautiful “Five Kisses” campaign (2013), “Magnum Silver” celebrating the brand’s 25th anniversary (2014), “Magnum Pink & Black” (2015) and this year “Magnum double” that dares pleasure seekers to release their inner beast by opting for an even more indulgent ice cream experience. 

In 2013 the brand introduced the Magnum Pleasure stores, this is a pop up concept to bring the ultimate indulgent experience to people and give them the opportunity to decorate their Magnum. 

Magnum campaigns mentioned above allowed the brand to position as a trendy and premium ice cream manufacturer. Brand consistency through time has been a key pillar of Magnum success, nowadays, people associate Magnum with much more than an simple ice cream stick,  it enables people to find occasions during their day to let their true pleasure go.