Roshen Dark Chocolate - Roshen | Clapboard Ad Archive

Roshen’s 2019 campaign for its Dark Chocolate product in Ukraine, crafted by Bart&Fink, stands out as a confident departure from the region’s prevailing confectionery advertising norms by embracing straightforwardness with a twist of irony and wit. At a time when Ukrainian brands often resorted to philosophical or overly complex narratives to communicate premium chocolate, Roshen boldly claimed the space of being simply just a perfect chocolate, turning category clichés on their head rather than reiterating familiar tropes about cacao origins or bittersweet taste profiles. The campaign’s film deploys what Clapboard’s taxonomy classifies as FORMAT#12—Parody or Borrowed Format—leveraging classic chocolate ad conventions through a self-aware and humorous lens: the archetypal “perfect man,” a nostalgic and evocative soundtrack reminiscent of well-loved pop culture, lavish and visually arresting set designs that evoke a kind of Lana Del Rey-style grandeur, and the playful, unexpected inclusion of flamingo motifs to punctuate the ironic tone. This approach not only undercuts traditional advertising solemnity but also invites the audience to engage with Roshen’s market leadership through shared humor and charm, reinforcing brand affinity by breaking from the norm rather than conforming to it. By delivering the spot in Ukrainian, the campaign roots itself firmly in local cultural nuance, further strengthening Roshen’s position as the foremost purveyor of premium dark chocolate in the region. This strategy reflects a mature brand comfortable enough in its category dominance to entertain and surprise consumers without resorting to earnestness or highbrow messaging. The campaign earns 63/100 in Clapboard’s global creative archive. Roshen Dark Chocolate’s campaign matters because it demonstrates that even in a traditionally conservative category, confident brands can redefine engagement through playful self-awareness that resonates with contemporary audiences seeking authenticity and levity.