Brazil’s Branded Entertainment landscape is still dominated by TV, but it’s been reinventing itself thanks to the integration of new media. The power of the Internet, catalyzed by the enormous reach of mobile platforms and devices, has been significantly changing the way Brazilians enjoy TV content. This scenario has generated new Branded Content opportunities, especially for creative initiatives that rely on the integration between two or more media vehicles to connect advertising storytelling with the everyday life of customers.

After 63 years, the last Kombi production line in the world closed its doors in Brazil. Our job was to create a campaign for the end of production and advertise the final special series, 'Kombi Last Edition'.

In place of a cold, purely economic announcement, our strategy was to show that we were not just talking about a car, but rather a symbol. We were practically bidding farewell to a member of the family.

Instead of simply announcing the end of production, we created the 'unlaunch' of a car, a novelty in the automobile industry. The news made a splash across the world, and people were invited to visit the site and submit their stories with the car, as well as checking out the 'Kombi Last Edition'. Journalists worldwide were also invited to come to Brazil and follow the production on the last Kombi in the world.

After two months’ worth of submissions came in, we chose the best and created the 'Kombi’s Will'. A list with its heirs and its last wishes.

The Kombi would deliver all of its bequests, turning each stop into a chapter of a webseries. The fulfillment of its last wish became a short film narrated by the Kombi itself, featuring a reunion with the son of the car’s creator – technically speaking, a brother of sorts.

That’s how a car that would never be built again managed to touch millions of people and leave a legacy for its brand.

It all started with the Kombi unlaunch ad, which invited people to come to the website and tell the stories of their experiences with the car. Our objective was to collect a large number of stories, as well as selling the 'Kombi Last Edition'.

Later, the Kombi sent personalized goodbye texts and we selected the most emblematic stories in order to create the Kombi’s will.

We developed bequests based on each chosen story, and the Kombi went around the world to deliver them – providing the footage for a webseries and a short film with the car’s last wishes.

The end of the Kombi made the news across the world, generating over $40,000,000 in earned media.

The goodbye film was watched for a period equivalent to 8 years in a single week, becoming the most-liked and –shared video in the history of Volkswagen Brazil.

After 3 weeks, the video had over 2,850,000 views, with a 98.8% positive reaction.

And all this success led to the Kombi Last Edition receiving buying intentions from over 27 countries. Production had to be doubled – even though the car was not technology-focused and was going for $40,000. 20% of all units were sold to collectors outside the country.

The Marketing KPI conducted every trimester by Volkswagen Germany registered a five-place advancement in terms of the brand’s image, going from 12th to 7th place.