Hong Kong Market celebrates the joy of cooking with CNY campaign

With Lunar New Year approaching, Hong Kong Market has unveiled a campaign to celebrate the joy of cooking and reward its loyal customers.

Running until 28 January, the campaign is themed “新春家有廚神 廚神 ! 家有 !”. In a conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Agnes Lung, executive director, group chief marketing and digital officer, Uni-China Group, said the phrase “家有” is a play on words with “加油,” which means “cheer up” or “keep it up.”

The campaign aims to encourage families to use their home stoves, promote fresh market shopping and the joys of cooking and family time together. It targets Hong Kong residents aged between 30 and 55, primarily focusing on female home chefs.

“Lunar New Year is a perfect time for family gatherings. We are grateful to kick off a comprehensive marketing campaign during this festive season, bringing joy and warmth to everyone and offering new culinary inspiration for family reunions,” she added.  

As part of the campaign, Hong Kong Market has partnered with Towngas to launch the “#名廚賀年菜” demonstration videos. These videos features actress Christine Kuo (苟芸慧), chef Kenneth Loo (四哥), as well as culinary instructor and TV host chef Andy Dark (黎建彰), who demonstrate their signature recipies with beef, pork, and seafood to help make consumers’ Chinese New Year table extra special.

The videos will be promoted on Hong Kong Market’s social media platforms, including Facebook, Xiaohongshu, YouTube and Instagram, as well as Towngas’ Facebook and Instagram pages.

By utilising KOL chefs on Hong Kong Market’s social media platforms, the video seeks to generate engaging content that prompts users to revisit and interact with the brand’s posts, according to Lung. “By encouraging a two-way dialogue, where users comment and receive the featured recipe in response, we aim to create a lively online community. This approach not only boosts user engagement but also generates excitement for the campaign.”

“By collaborating with celebrity chefs and utilising engaging social media content, we strive to cultivate a vibrant community that celebrates our love for cooking and the festivities of the Chinese New Year,” she added. 

To further engage the audience, Hong Kong Market is launching an open call for home chefs to take part in a cooking competition named 民間廚神爭霸戰. This event invites cooking enthusiasts to present their culinary creations, emphasising that the joy of cooking is for everyone.

The contest focuses on a "chicken" theme to highlight culinary creativity. Participants will need to create and upload a dish featuring "new year, creativity, and nutrition," along with a description of at least 300 words. This qualifies them for the competition on 22 January, where judges will select 12 finalists to compete at the Towngas Cooking Centre. From there, the judges will choose the top five winners who will receive prizes totaling HK$20,000. A live broadcast will also showcase the competition, allowing viewers to engage in real-time and heightening anticipation for the grand finale.

To attract more traffic and increase the average basket size at its 21 wet markets, Hong Kong Market is offering various promotions, discount coupons, and redemptions during the Lunar New Year period. For example, in response to the rising popularity of the “panda economy,” Hong Kong Market’s CRM programme has strategically introduced Japanese intellectual property (IP) “MOCHI MOCHI Panda” homeware premiums as an exclusive member redemption. The trendjacking initiative seeks to generate buzz around the brand and attract a younger demographic, according to Lung.

Don’t miss: Hong Kong Market redefines grocery shopping experience with new app

Back in December last year, Hong Kong Market launched a new shopping platform app that aimed to offer busy citizens a more convenient and thoughtful online grocery shopping experience.

The app's launch comes at a time when fresh markets have traditionally provided the freshest and most delicious ingredients. However, with changing times, the rise of fast-food culture has led many to prioritise speed and convenience over freshness. Since the pandemic, there has also been a significant increase in home cooking, especially among younger generations.

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