Mini Wheats

The original ad is directed towards an adult audience. The idea of “feeding your inner kid” implies that the wheat of mini wheats makes for a responsible, ”adult” breakfast, while the frosting gives a little hit of sugar like when you were a kid. It's bridging the gap between what is a cereal for an adult and a child.

The “Look, no hands” copy, however, takes it a bit too far, especially with the parenthetical piece. The smiling mini wheat creature is cute, rather than creepy, which is good, but it feels a bit too kid-friendly for an ad directed towards adults. I thought there was potential to create an ad about Mini Wheat’s making you feel like a kid, without the cartoonish feeling of the ad.

The initial idea was to have a father and son sitting at a table, and the boy is tossing Mini Wheats into the air for the father to catch in his mouth. My main issue here was that it was a lot of motion for a print ad. This second version captured the same feeling in a way that was more suited to print. The message to adults here isn't about appealing to a part of you that you've outgrown and want to look back on. It's about the child-like joy you can feel when you're sharing something nostalgic, that you love, with a new generation. The copy reminds the viewer that there is a health aspect to the cereal with the shredded wheat, and that a little bit of sweetness is something to be celebrated.