Shelter Chocolate
Pleasure with purpose.
Filed under: Charity merchandise, retail, chocolate, food & beverage, rebrand
THE ASK
To revive UK charity Shelter's bland Christmas merchandise chocolate range, and turn it into a festive best-seller.
The line had to be giftable and joyful, while still carrying the weight of a very serious cause: fighting homelessness.
The challenge was to connect chocolate’s pleasure with Shelter’s purpose without one drowning out the other.
THE TURN
We leaned into hedonism and dark humour.
Bars shouted selfish cravings like “I’d drop everything for chocolate” and “Chocolate is the answer,” then flipped the script with a punchline: every indulgence fuels the fight for housing rights.
Bright colours and bold type made the packs irresistible on shelf, while the collective joke turned private pleasure into togetherness and public action.
Finally, Shelter’s chocolate range went from overlooked charity merch. It became a loud, joyful act of protest in foil and paper. Pleasure made powerful.
ROLE: CONSUMER RESEARCH, BRAND STRATEGY, PACKAGING DIRECTION