Devour, a smaller brand in Kraft Heinz's portfolio, to appear in Super Bowl

Devour is buying a spot in the Big Game, a big move up for a frozen dinner line that two years ago chose only to do a Super Bowl-related stunt. The Kraft Heinz product is a line of dinners, sandwiches and bowl meals aimed at hungry guys. The edgy Kraft Heinz brand (yes, there's actually an edgy Kraft Heinz brand) debuted in 2016 with spots using the provocative tagline "Food You Want to Fork." In February 2017, Devour opted for a stunt approach, holding auditions for a newcomer to star in an ad that it said would air during the game. A guy named Jude Flannelly, from Queens, New York, appeared in the 30-second spot, which did indeed air during a game—a break on AMC's Zombie Bowl Marathon. In 2018, Deadpool promoted Devour frozen sandwiches ahead of the release of "Deadpool 2." Now, after double-digit sales increases, "there's really nothing else like the Super Bowl" to continue to reach hungry guys, says Katy Marshall, head of marketing for the brand. A 30-second Devour spot from David Miami is set to run during the third quarter. It appears that Devour will be the first frozen meal brand to have a Super Bowl commercial, based on a search through Ad Age's archives. Details of the commercial haven't been disclosed yet, but Marshall says to expect it to build on the brand's "unapologetic stand" for crave-worthy frozen food. The brand tries to appeal to people with hearty appetites looking for convenient meals. Its best seller is white cheddar macaroni and cheese with bacon. While frozen food isn't as sexy as cars, beer or most other advertisers in the Big Game, it's a strong seller. Last year, 76 percent of Americans brought home a frozen meal and the full-calorie premium meal part of the industry, the part of the business where Devour plays, is growing, says Marshall. "We think there's no better time to be playing in frozen food and are very excited about the growth that's to come," she says. Devour's Super Bowl spot comes a year after Kraft Heinz promoted the Kraft brand with a crowdsourced "Family Greatly" spot. Heinz was in the game in 2016 with "Wiener Stampede" and in 2014 with "Hum." It's worth noting that back in 1985, the Canned Food Information Council aired a futuristic spot in the Super Bowl. "Even in the year 3000." It began, "the question will be: What's for dinner?"

Devour, a smaller brand in Kraft Heinz's portfolio, to appear in Super Bowl

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