Why Barilla and Tennis Star Coco Gauff are Taking to the Court for the US Open
As the world’s tennis greats get ready to throw down on court at the US Open tournament, pasta brand Barilla has released a new campaign in partnership with Coco Gauff, the current female no. 4 to promote their wheat alternative pastas. Serving Love is a play on the tennis score ‘love’, which means ‘zero’, emphasising the care behind a nutritious meal and the product has zero additives.
The strategic partnership is not a new one for Barilla - they’ve been working with the 19-year-old- hot shot since she was 15. Here Angela Cotter, U.S. pasta marketing director talks to LBB’s Laura Swinton about the shared values behind the partnership and the growing marketing activity and excitement around female athletes.
LBB> This partnership and campaign are designed to promote Barilla's chickpea and lentil pastas. I imagine there are a host of challenges and opportunities when marketing these alternative pasta products compared to the more traditional wheat pasta. Can you talk me through those?
Angela> Consumers are becoming increasingly conscious about what is in the foods they eat and our approach is to make a variety of pastas to appeal to a variety of consumers. Our target Barilla Chickpea and Red Lentil consumers are creative cooks committed to their health. They are inclined to try new ingredients for the sake of nutrition and tap into their sense of adventure -- usually reserved for travel and trying new restaurants – and apply it to creating delicious and nourishing dishes. It was with these people in mind that we decided we needed to make a new shape – orzo – and thus bring new experiences into chickpea pasta. In fact, early feedback has suggested that consumers are surprised by just how many different dishes they can make with this new cut!
LBB> Can you talk me through the overall growth of these newer products to date and the approach you've taken to market the chickpea and lentil variants?
Angela> We keep a close eye on the food landscape and what our consumers are looking for, and we’ve seen a continued shift toward plant-based diets – specifically an interest in the nutritional benefits of legumes. Protein is an increasingly important factor for health-conscious people, so we knew there was a need to be met and that Barilla could meet it.
Barilla launched Chickpea and Red Lentil pastas in 2018 to offer customers gluten-free pasta with plant protein, and we’ve been happy with the ways Barilla fans have embraced these alternative ingredient pastas. The response since Chickpea Orzo hit shelves in March has been incredible, as consumers were delighted to find a swap for rice or a delicious addition to soups and salads.
LBB> Creatively the campaign leans on a playful pun based on the word 'love' - what did that realisation unlock for you?
Angela> At Barilla, we believe sharing a quality pasta dish together is the ultimate sign of love and we want to connect with our consumers through our shared love of pasta. Unlike other alt-pasta brands, Barilla Chickpea and Red Lentil pastas are made with one simple ingredient – just chickpea or red lentil flour – and no additives, like xanthan gum. We wanted to leverage our competitive advantage in the marketplace to bring that to life in a unique and timely way for consumers, during this exhilarating moment in culture and sports.
LBB> Why is tennis, in particular, such a strategic fit for the Barilla brand?
Angela> Coco partnering with us on Barilla ‘Serving Love’ is our latest opportunity to delight fans with our chickpea and red lentil pastas, which are a good source of protein, made with just one ingredient and zero additives. Because when love is pure, there's no need for extras – in other words, zero equals love, just like in tennis. Add in the fact that protein is a fundamental food for athletes, choosing Coco for the Serving Love campaign felt like a natural fit.
LBB> I would imagine that Coco Gauff is a star who is in high demand for brands - why do you think that there was such synergy between her values and Barilla's?
Angela> Passion, dedication and fair play are values that inspire Barilla’s way of working. They are also fundamental qualities that we look for in a sports personality. Coco embodies all of these qualities and inspires us as one of the brightest prospects in American tennis and as a symbol of the next generation of players. We have been working with Coco since she was 15 years old and are honoured to be a part of her flourishing tennis journey.
Coco’s drive for her sport married with her passion for fueling her body with nutritious meals perfectly complements the Barilla’s mission to inspire a joy for food and how it nourishes people to live their best lives.
LBB> More broadly, while tennis has a history of female superstars, it does seem like there's a broader shift in attitudes when it comes to women's sport and brands being more excited to back female athletes, appreciating that they hold the keys to different audiences. What are your thoughts about this?
Angela> We love seeing the momentum grow for women’s sports! Coco inspired us from such a young age and seeing her impact resonate across sports inspires us even more.
Our brand partners each bring something different to the Barilla Brand, and we couldn’t be more proud of how they have inspired consumers to gather around the table and share in a nutritious meal. While we don’t know exactly what future campaigns Barilla will cook up with Coco, Barilla will continue to share our love of pasta in unique and exciting ways, whether that be through a heart-shaped pasta that inspires a meal to be shared together around the table, or summering like an Italian with a limited-edition pesto collection. On Coco’s end, her love of pasta, coupled with her love of her family, fit right into this mission, and gives us a lot of exciting ideas to consider in the future.
