HARIBO | キッズボイス 相撲 | 2021
Sumo Wrestlers Saying "Squishy-Squishy" Are Almost Too Cute for Their Own Good / HARIBO "Kids' Voices: Sumo"
A hulking sumo wrestler in a yukata says things like "Squishy-squishy~" and "It's so juicy." But the voice is a child's. For three seconds you're confused, and the next second you're already grinning.
The problem
Since 2014, HARIBO has been running its "Kids' Voices" series, which started in the UK, around the world. The idea is to layer children's voices over adults' everyday lives, bringing to life the line "eating gummy candy brings out the child inside you." Each country has used a different setting: rugby players in New Zealand, company executives in the US, chess players in Poland. Japan chose sumo. The wrestlers appearing in the ad are former sumo wrestlers affiliated with "Osumosan.com."
The insight
The moment you eat something sweet, even adults turn back into kids. That's the core idea running through the whole series. The Japanese version picked the "strict and intimidating" world of sumo to make that gap as big as possible. The whole thing works simply because of the contrast between the wrestlers' serious faces and the innocent voices coming out of them.
The idea
In the 30-second commercial, four wrestlers in yukata share HARIBO candy, describing the "squishy texture" and differences in flavor in childlike words, before ending with a sumo match using the gummies. Their expressions and movements stay completely adult—only their voices are out of sync. That single twist carries the whole ad. It was produced by Beacon Communications and Onion, with planning support from the UK's Quiet Storm.
What happened
In February 2021, it aired as HARIBO's first-ever TV commercial in Japan, broadcast in the Tokyo, Kansai, and Tokai regions. It ranked first in its industry category in a commercial likability ranking. In 2024, a sequel called "The Armored Warrior" was also made.
Afterthought
No product explanation needed, no celebrity needed. Just one mismatch—adult appearance, child's voice—is enough to bring the whole brand world to life. It makes sense that this series has been running for ten years across 19 countries. Watching those wrestlers say "squishy-squishy," I found myself turning back into a kid too.
