Vaseline captures the spirit of Heritage Day

Vaseline won Heritage Day this year with a campaign that captured our culture beautifully, says Unati Moalusi, chief people officer at VML South Africa

Vaseline won Heritage Day this year with a campaign that captured our culture beautifully (Image supplied)

Vaseline won Heritage Day this year with a campaign that captured our culture beautifully. A static visual, minimal copy, and a wave of nostalgia that hit thousands of South Africans with a gut-punch of emotion.

The Vaseline Heritage Day campaign is a beautiful example of the cardinal rule of storytelling: show, don’t tell. It’s a static image, but you can feel it, smell it, and hear it.

That multisensory experience is how you tell a story that allows the audience to insert themselves into the narrative, so that it becomes their story.

Like so many others who flooded social media with comments, when I saw it, I was instantly transported back to my own childhood. Growing up in a black household in South Africa, Vaseline was a ritual.

If you weren’t shining, you were “dry,” and no child was allowed to look that way! My mom would cream my skin, making sure I left the house glowing. And, boy, did that melanin glow! It’s a ritual I’ve carried on with my own children still to this day.

Reflecting on the campaign, Nhlanhla Ngcobo, the Executive Creative Director on this campaign, says that people resonate with something that feels like their own lived experience.

"When you tap into memories like that, work becomes relatable and shareable. What’s been beautiful to see is all the anecdotes people have been sharing in the comments.

"They show how deeply connected Vaseline is to our culture. And the campaign says to the customer that, as a brand, we see this, and we see you.”

Representation in action

Along with the nostalgia, I also felt enormous pride for this work.

People often speak about diversity in the creative industry in theory. This campaign is what it looks like in action. It’s lived experience translated into a cultural snapshot that made an entire community feel seen.

I saw myself, my children, and my mom in that visual. I saw generations reflected at me.

And judging by the online reactions, so did countless others. This is what representation looks like. It’s the pride of seeing your own story honoured; the joy of recognising yourself in an advert and thinking, that’s me.

That emotional connection only comes when you have the right people in the room. And when those people have agency.

We’ve all seen the term “diversity hire” being used as a synonym for incompetence. But transformation is not a tick-box exercise. It is about building teams who bring their whole selves to the table and are empowered to shape the stories we tell.

Not just a seat, but a voice

On this campaign, the creatives brought their lived experiences into the work.

They knew instinctively what would resonate because it was their own truth. And critically, they had the freedom to express it. Leadership created the space for voices to be heard, even when not everyone in the room shared the cultural reference.

VML's chief creative officer, Fran Luckin, says, “When the team had to explain the context of this idea to me, I knew we were onto something good.

"Creative work that makes you feel something isn’t generic. It’s created for people who will appreciate it by those who already do. This ad is so simple and yet so powerful. It proves that you don’t need gimmicks to connect with an audience if you have empathy. I’m immensely proud of the team.”

It's that level of trust that allowed the idea to flourish.

I would love the success of this campaign to serve as a rallying point for the industry to create spaces where creatives are unmuted and free to bring their heritage into their work. Because when South Africans see themselves in the work, they feel pride and belonging. And they feel seen.

Behind the scenes

Vaseline’s Heritage Day campaign hit South Africans in the feels and social media has been lighting up with nostalgia ever since.

At a time when the glut of content on social feeds has users’ eyes glazed over, and on a day when plenty of brands came out to play, Vaseline’s Heritage Day campaign captured South Africa’s hearts.

Many black South Africans took to social media, saying the campaign felt like recognition, and that’s exactly what it was.

“We learn about how our brand lives in the communities we serve, and the stories people tell about our brand,” says Kenosi Matsebatlela, head of marketing for Vaseline.

“One of the stories that kept coming up was people remembering how they would get ready for school and part of that routine was having Vaseline vigorously rubbed into your face to set you up for the day with confidence.”

That moment, captured as if frozen in time, was what made the ad so real for so many South Africans.

“Moments like these remind me of how our shared practices are simultaneously connective and instructive.

"They carry memory, identity, and familiarity,” commented one Instagram user (@tefftheory). Other users shared treasured memories of their childhood, while others commented on how they’ve carried their childhood Vaseline skin-care rituals into adulthood.

Power in simplicity

What’s striking about the campaign is how simple it is.

The ad people resonated with most is a static image with minimal copy and understated branding.

No AI was harmed in the making of it. It’s low-tech and human, relying on good-old copywriting and strong photography to tell the story.

That choice to keep it old-school feels fitting for an ad celebrating 155 years of Vaseline’s impact on South African heritage. A slick, high-tech production would have been out of place.

Adding another layer of authenticity, the child in the picture is the daughter of one of the art directors who worked on the campaign.

“We took her out of school to come and help us shoot the ad, it was really a family affair,” says Nhlanhla Ngcobo, executive creative director at VML South Africa, who spearheaded the campaign.

He adds that the little girl was a natural. The shoot took all of 45 minutes. That’s the beauty of careful planning. The execution may have been simple, but the idea behind it was bold.

Personal messaging builds connection

What makes this campaign work is that it feels deeply personal. That started at the ideation phase.

The team drew on their own lived experience and memories of a childhood where Vaseline was ever-present in their homes.

It was the “polish” that made children shine – both literally and figuratively; a magic touch that gave them the confidence to go out and take on the world.

When it came to conveying that message in the ad, it had to be in vernacular – a bold choice for a brand that appeals to a broad spectrum of South Africans.

But the team was trusted to tell their story in the way they believed would resonate best.

Rather than alienate part of the Vaseline audience, the deeply personal nature of the story resonated even more broadly – even beyond South Africa’s borders. Not everyone understood all the words, but everyone understood the message.

In a further act of audacity, the branding on the ad was subtle – a small logo above a tiny tagline that allowed the creative to take centre stage.

“Authentic stories are better told through a human voice, rather than a brand voice,” explains Ngcobo.

“You have to understand the culture before you try to represent it, and for the team that worked on this, it was personal.

"But what also made it work was that the client understood what we were trying to do, and they were all in. They understood why the story needed to be given space to shine. When you have a client partner who shares your vision, you can bring stories like this to life.”

Capturing the spirit of Heritage Day

It’s the perfect celebration of South African heritage and a fitting tribute from an iconic brand to its loyal customers, who have ritualised the product and passed it down through generations. “People are telling us that they feel seen,” says Matsebatlela.

“I’m so proud that we could give people this moment of cultural unity, where they can celebrate this little ritual that they’re passing on to their children and appreciate that it’s an act of love they learnt from their moms and their gogos. Isn’t that what Heritage Day is all about?”

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