Saint Gobain: Say goodbye to air-conditioners?

Move aside, colas and ice-creams – Saint Gobain’s Sun Ban glass is here to keep people ‘cool’ this summer.

Believe it or not, Saint Gobain, the glass brand which entered India more than a decade ago, recently launched Sun Ban, a solar control glass, which not only reduces the amount of sunlight that enters homes through windows, but also cuts down on the heat transmitted.

“We came up with the name Sun Ban to make it generic to solar control glass – a relatively newer, under-advertised category in India,” says Dinesh Kumar, marketing manager, Saint Gobain Glass. In India, AIS and Modiguard are among the few brands that offer solar control glass.

The advertisement opens on the shot of an old man resting on his sofa, quite uncomfortable in the heat that is coming in from the open window. He begins to remove his vest because it is too hot. On seeing this, his wife who is working in the kitchen, reprimands him for doing so in front of the open window where anyone can see him. The old man is obviously too disturbed by the heat to pay heed to his wife’s argument and continues to take off his vest. To save themselves from embarrassment, the old lady goes and closes the window. On turning back, she is shocked to see that her husband has not only put on more clothes, but is now shivering with cold (thanks to the heat being cut off by the window glass). As the old lady stares at the glass, the voiceover says, ‘Cuts the heat. Keeps you cool: Sun Ban Reflective Glass from Saint Gobain’. (Submit your opinion on this ad.)

According to Deepa Geethakrishnan, group creative director, Lowe, the usability and practicality of the product was of prime importance in this ad. The old couple angle was used to add charm to the subtle exaggeration. “Old couples have a very different sort of chemistry,” she explains. “At some level, they are almost indifferent to what one person says to the other, and yet there is a beautiful bond that keeps them together.”

Another ad in the campaign has a Japanese girl who keeps fanning herself, making it impossible for a still photographer to click her photograph until Sun Ban comes to their relief. A third film in the series is under way.

The product targets SEC AB, males, 25+ (as men tend to lead decisions on building/ construction items). The ad targets both direct consumers and builders.

The ad has been created by R Balakrishnan (chairman and chief creative officer, Lowe), Kevin d’Souza (senior vice-president), Vijay Xavier (associate V-P) and Sujith Sarkar (brand services director), apart from Geethekrishnan. The ad has been produced by MAD Films and directed by Francouise. The films were shot in Mumbai.

Due to the nature of the product, summer was selected as the perfect time for launching this communication.

“Our success in our previous TVCs prompted us to use television as our primary medium this time again,” says R Subramanian, director, sales and marketing, Saint Gobain Glass India.

For the record, French company Saint Gobain has created around eight television adverts ever since it entered India. Memorable ones include those for its transparent glass (the waiter ‘Ha!’ ad, and the ad featuring a lady throwing cleaning water on the glass outside a restaurant, only to have the men inside flinch), and those for its mirrors, which showcased clarity of reflection (the ad in which a small boy entering a men’s toilet pisses on the reflection of the toilet, instead of the real thing).