Costa

BACKGROUND

Costa was struggling to connect with Gen Z – a group drinking less coffee and rejecting traditional, elitist coffee culture. With goals to drive awareness, consideration and purchase intent, Costa turned to LADbible.

Our research uncovered two key trends:

• Coffee decline: 46% of Gen Z never drink it at home, 52% never buy takeaway coffee.
• Coffee snobbery backlash: Gen Z craves fun, indulgent, accessible experiences over status-led brews.

We tapped into the rising Little Treat Culture – a Gen Z-fuelled shift from hustle to pleasure – dominating TikTok but still unclaimed by brands.

With an exciting menu, 2,800+ UK stores, and the right brand tone, Costa had the perfect opportunity to own this space and build real connections with Gen Z.

WHAT WE DID

Across Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook we launched bold, social-first content for Costa – rolled out in phases to maximise impact.

Phase 1: The Treat Report sparked national debate on favourite drinks and flavours. The data helped us optimise targeting – especially toward hard-to-reach audiences like males.

Phase 2: The Treat Tour gave back to community heroes with surprise Costa parties, goodies, and £1K grants – landing us LADbible’s second-highest performing branded TikTok ever.

Next up: Cuppa Moments let us tap into real-time trends, keeping Costa top-of-mind with Gen Z.

Finale: A heartwarming Christmas Moment reunited loved ones over Costa’s festive menu – wrapping the campaign with real emotion and major impact.

RESULTS

Tapping into shifting coffee culture, we put Costa at the centre of the social conversation with the ‘Little Treat Drumbeat’ strategy. The results? A +17pt boost in awareness, +14pt in consideration, and +12pt in purchase intent.

Among 18–24s, treating themselves with Costa rose from 25% to 37%. We hit 41.5M+ impressions (12.3% over target), drove 24.6K link clicks, 504K+ engagements, and over 26K shares and saves.

Most importantly, claimed visits more than doubled — from 2.5 to 6 in just 8 months.