THE KITKAT HEIST
Brand
KITKAT
Entrant Agency
VML
Category
Direct
Festival & Year
Cannes Lions (2026)
Case Study Details
THE KITKAT HEIST - KitKat - Burson (London) / VML (London) - CANNES LIONS 2026
Presentation Board
"A COLLECTIVE }
P DETECTIVEST th
Gil cenrive pion
“THE INTERNET'S
NEWEST OBSESSION.
Kicket
"ASEHOAS
Forbes
“A HUGE WIN”
FAST@MPANY
OFFICIAL STATEMENT
We can confirm that 12T of KitKat
products were stolen while in transit
between our factory in Central Italy
and their destination in Poland.
We are working closely with local
authorities and supply chain
partners to investigate.
The good news: there are no
Concems for consumer safety,
and supply is not affected,
Thank you
ja
413,793 KITKATS HAVE
BEEN STOLEN.
IS YOURS ONE OF THEM?
uy
2.2 MILLION
(A TRACKER ENGAGEMENTS...
SK *
t
$224"
ILLION
EARNED MEDIAINODAYS 9S"
>
SOURCE: MELTWATER
i
70.5 BILLION
SOCIAL ae
‘SOURCE: TALKWALK
TURNING CONSUMERS INTO DETECTIVES TO CRACK OPEN AN INVESTIGATION
Context: A week before Easter, a key sales moment for chocolate, KitKat faced a supply
chain crisis: 12 tonnes were stolen in transit. Rather than hide it, we released the story to
capture the world’s attention.
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THEINDEPENDENT Bailyscafail BuzzFeeo CNN TIME Newsweek
TREET JOURNAL. dlftian Forbes a&MSNBC TheNew dork @imes FAST@MPANY Uw The Daily Telegraph ENEWS THE TIMES OF INDIA Se Monde WA caviamnny
Idea: We targeted those interested in the story with the ultimate call to action: help us solve
the crime, The Stolen KitKat Tracker let them check batch codes to discover if theirs was
stolen, encouraged purchase and even revealed a verified lead for the police investigation.
HEENEWS ©CBS METRO CUONEWS. G@iindustanCimes ERA Los Angeles Times Mek 22min Mashable @USA TODAY
(@prevrers The Telegraph Yrews ®tvalobo Enc. []] AFP@ LW,
