Aviation Gin | Arlene's Big Leap | 2020
Finally turning "21" at 84 / Aviation Gin "Arlene's Big Leap"
Arlene was born on 2/29/1936, making her 84 this year. But since her birthday only comes once every four years, 2/29/2020 was finally her "21st" birthday. Technically speaking, that makes this the first legal drink of her life.
The problem
Ever since Ryan Reynolds became an owner of Aviation Gin, the brand has been known for jumping on current events with lightning-fast ads — including its quick response to the Peloton ad controversy. This time, they took the once-every-four-years quirk of leap years and turned it into a story about one real person.
The insight
If you're born on a leap day, you don't actually turn 21 after 21 years. Arlene had lived 84 years just to reach her fifth birthday. That one simple angle — "someone who's never been able to drink" — gave a gin brand the perfect reason to step in.
The idea
Ryan Reynolds never appears on screen — only his voice. At her home in Pittsburgh, Arlene is handed a gin and soda with a slice of orange, takes a sip, and exclaims, "Holy Moses!" At the end, when she's asked, "Who's Ryan Reynolds?" the narrator replies, "Just ignore that, she's drinking."
What happened
From concept to release took nine days, with zero media budget. Even so, it racked up more than 500 million impressions in the first five days and was picked up by outlets like People, Mashable, and Ad Age, reaching an estimated media value of 5 million dollars. As a bonus, the brand gave out gift cards to other people turning "21" on a leap year. It was produced by Maximum Effort and 160over90.
Afterthought
Finding a birthday that only comes once every four years, turning it into an ad in nine days, and getting it in front of the world with zero budget. Happy birthday, Arlene.
