Cannes: KitKat wins PR Grand Prix for 'Heist'
Burson London was also named the inaugural PR Agency of the Year.
KitKat has won this year's PR Grand Prix at Cannes Lions for its 'KitKat Heist', jointly developed by Burson and VML in London. The work, which turned the apparent theft of a lorry carrying more than 400,000 chocolate bars into a promotional campaign, stood out as a rare example of a brand responding creatively and opportunistically to a crisis.
Dana Tahir, chief executive of Havas Red Middle East, who served as PR jury president, said at a press conference that the work "checked all the boxes" from earned media to community engagement. She called it a "recipe for marketing that actually moves the needle", driving purchase intent and sales. She added that it challenged traditional crisis communication by creating a cultural moment instead of merely managing a problem, "choreographing" risk.
