Symprove calls out ‘BS’ health trends in new spoof campaign

The health and wellness industry always seems to get a bit of boost after Dec. 31, evidenced not only by all the packed gyms in January but by the spike in cure-alls that are aggressively marketed to wannabe New Year’s resolution-keepers. But as that annual cycle flares back up this month, supplement maker Symprove is calling out what it describes as “bullsh*t,” launching a spoof campaign for outlandish (fake) products to highlight just how ridiculous some supposed “wellness” solutions can be. Spearheaded by London-based ad agency Lucky Generals, the British gut health brand created a 60-second short film titled “Lisa’s Gut Wellness Trends 2023,” taking a quasi-home shopping approach in which its titular character—English TV presenter and Symprove brand ambassador Lisa Snowdon—walks viewers through a trio of jaw-dropping wellness items. Among the products hawked in the video are a pair of “gut candles” that smell like “constipation” and “diarrhoea,” respectively; a “bowel counselor” who speaks directly to Snowdon’s stomach, encouraging it to stop bloating; and an “anal crystal,” an enormous gemstone that acts as a suppository to realign your bowel chakras over the course of a few months. Then, as the ad wraps up, it’s all revealed to be a parody of modern health fads, with Snowdon then encouraging viewers to visit Symprove’s website for “gut health tips backed by science.” “New year health regimes are often just a load of old shit. So we wanted to find a way of exposing them for what they are. And what better way than inventing our own preposterous high-end health kicks for IBS sufferers,” said Paul Mallon, head of Lucky General’s Special Ops, a unit within the agency that led the charge on Symprove’s new film. The campaign will be running across the company’s social channels as well as in print throughout January. Symprove isn’t the only brand to call out silly health trends recently, though. Earlier this week, U.K.-based fitness chain Gymbox launched a new campaign from AMV BBDO that takes aim at clichéd wellness quotes, using a social media and out-of-home advertising blitz to add some levity to today’s “serious and weird” gym culture, as Gymbox marketing director Rory McEntee put it.

Symprove calls out ‘BS’ health trends in new spoof campaign

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