The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2022
Nescafé Egypt's Ramadan ad sold the first post-fast cup by showing no coffee at all
During Ramadan, Nescafé aired an ad with zero coffee — just people craving their missing ritual — and won Effie MENA 2025 Gold for the idea.
Nescafé (Nestlé Egypt)
The solution
In Egypt, Nescafé faced a predictable annual problem: every Ramadan, coffee sales value fell, because fasting runs 11–12 hours a day and the short window between iftar and sleep is filled with traditional drinks like karkadeh, jallab and carob juice. The morning coffee — the brand's most cherished ritual — became the one thing millions could not have.
The instinctive fix would have been an ad about why Nescafé is worth waiting for: richer taste, fresher beans, a better blend. FP7 McCann Cairo did the opposite: the film showed no Nescafé at all. Office workers act out a full coffee ritual with an imaginary machine — one colleague begs for a sip, another refuses, and the boss scolds them about coasters under cups that do not exist. Viewers laugh because they recognize the craving exactly.
Ads of the World, which published the work, documents the problem: Nescafé's sales value fell year on year during Ramadan as consumers fasted and switched to traditional beverages. The campaign ran in Egypt and the UAE in April 2022, and the Japanese advertising archive PR EDGE described the office scene in detail, noting the film closes with the line that for everyone who misses coffee, a refreshing morning starts with Nescafé.
Three years later the idea's effectiveness was formally recognized: at the MENA Effie Awards 2025, the campaign — entered as 'Mourning Morning Coffee' — won Gold and Silver for Nescafé, part of the 15-win night that made FP7 McCann the region's most effective agency network.
Why it worked
- The insight was shared: every fasting Egyptian knew the ache of the morning cup, so no explanation was needed.
- Showing zero product made the brand the invisible object of desire instead of a hard sell.
- Timing converted empathy into action: the ad landed in the final stretch of Ramadan, pointing at the first cup of Eid.
- Humor kept the message light, so the deprivation felt relatable rather than preachy.
What can be applied
Don't fight the cultural constraint — dramatize the longing it creates, then arrive the moment it lifts. The craving is the ad; the product is the resolution.
Aftermath
The film became one of Nescafé Egypt's best-known Ramadan executions and was still being recognized for effectiveness three years later: in November 2025, 'Mourning Morning Coffee' took Gold and Silver at the MENA Effie Awards, and FP7 McCann closed the night as Most Effective Agency Network with 15 wins. The campaign demonstrated that a brand can hold share through a category-wide consumption gap by claiming the moment the gap ends, rather than fighting the ritual that causes it.
Sources
- Nestlé: The Unattainable Cup of Coffee
- 断食中の人々が繰り広げる「想像上のコーヒー」を巡った小競り合い エジプトのネスカフェのCM
- WINNERS — MENA Effie Awards 2025
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