Electric, experiential, impossible to ignore

The Brief in Brief

As part of their BLIND TASTE campaign, Oatly needed a fresh, future-facing way to show up in public spaces — with oat in hand. They wanted to scale their impact, sample at pace, and bring oat-based coffee to people across the UK, without compromising on sustainability. Oatly wanted us to design a mass-sampling experience that’s simple, smart, and sustainable — built for high-footfall locations, and scalable across cities and campaigns. A fully electric vehicle was central to the plan: zero emissions, maximum visibility, and easy to replicate in future activations.

What We Did

We brought the Oatly coffee van to life — a branded electric sampling vehicle designed to turn heads and turn out samples fast. Kitted out to deliver soft-serve and oat lattes on the move, the van toured UK cities over a five-week roadshow, serving up an impressive 8,522 coffees across 25 active days. The route spanned over 1,235 miles per vehicle — from Frome to Bristol, then on to Birmingham, Leeds, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and back to Frome — with the ID Buzz van receiving 8 full battery charges and 52 battery set recharges (with four batteries per set) along the way. Each session ran seamlessly for seven to eight hours, powered by two expert brand ambassadors and fueled by 1,018 litres of Oatly and 503 litres of water. This high-energy, oat-fuelled journey also generated around 29,827 smiles — averaging 3–4 smiles per cup — proving just how much joy a flat white (or pun) can bring. We also prepped the setup to flex into retail spaces like Sainsbury’s car parks, making it easy to plug into future activations with minimal tweaks.

Why It Worked

The electric van was a moving billboard and café in one — low impact, high return. The setup was intentionally simple: fast to activate, easy to repeat, and effective in any space. By keeping things nimble and culturally plugged in, Oatly showed up in a way that felt fresh, flexible, and 100% on-brand. The campaign laid the groundwork for an extended TASTE strategy — and a scalable, repeatable roadshow format to take into 2025 and beyond. Stephanie Elgegren, Brand Project Manager at Oatly, shared: “Taste is one of the biggest motivators for people, especially when it comes to breaking old habits — and we know people love Oatly in their coffee, they just don’t always realise it. With the launch of our national Taste campaign, we teamed up with Positive Experience to bring tens of thousands of barista-crafted Oatly coffees to people across the UK. From producing our fully electric, off-grid vision to delivering a seamless 4-week tour, their team brought the brand to life with energy, creativity, and first-class execution.”