In his fifth year as De’Longhi’s global brand ambassador, Brad Pitt is back in another campaign, facing his toughest critic yet—his 16 dogs.
Following the launch of ‘Perfetto’ in September, B&T sat down with De’Longhi’s global CMO Aparna Sundaresh to discuss the relationship with the Hollywood Star, the strategy behind the campaign and what the spot has set out to achieve.
“Our relationship with Brad has developed beyond a traditional ambassador partnership. After five years, he has become closely associated with Perfetto and De’Longhi’s global brand world,” Sundaresh told B&T.
“There is an alignment between Brad and the qualities we want the brand to represent: quality, craft, design, sophistication and a certain effortlessness.
“With this campaign also, Spike brought understated humour, showing a more playful and relatable side of the brand and Brad, while retaining the sophistication that is a De’Longhi brand trademark.”
Directed by Spike Jonze, the story is set in a home Pitt shares with his 16 four- legged roommates. Pitt longs for just one quiet morning where he can enjoy a cup of coffee from his De’Longhi machine. Instead, there seems to be a complicated dynamic at play with the roommates every single morning.
Here the dogs begin questioning Pitt.
Lawrence wants to know why he got up late. Kyle wants to know why the dishes aren’t done. Patrick wants to know why he’s dressed up. In this film, a man tries to navigate the perils of the group in search of his one small luxury: a cup of coffee.
Will he find that moment? Will he find his ‘Perfetto’ — a small, hard-won hot or cold triumph in this world of large personalities? Will anyone?
Sundaresh explained that the dogs are a creative hook in the story.
“They bring the product idea of ‘duality’ to life and in a direct but not overly preachy way. And importantly entertain whilst doing that,” she said.
“We know audiences engage well with dogs in advertising and saw their ability to create an immediate sense of warmth, relatability and engagement. But they also needed to earn their place in the story in a relevant manner.
“The 16 dogs become Brad’s demanding housemates, creating humour and chaos around the one thing he knows exactly how he wants: his coffee. They nudge him to drink a cold one or a hot one, critique him and grudgingly compliment him. It gave us a distinctive, memorable way to bring the idea of personal choice and dual experience to life.
This is the latest global campaign from LOLA Madrid in its ongoing creative partnership with De’Longhi. Together, they continue to champion the idea that coffee is more than a drink. It’s a personal ritual shaped by taste, mood, and the moments that matter most. Because when it comes to coffee, as Pitt said, “Your coffee. Your way. Always Perfetto.”
Sundaresh lifted the lid on the strategy behind the films.
We wanted to “continue building Perfetto as a long-term, distinctive global platform for De’Longhi, while evolving it to reflect how coffee consumption is changing,” she added.
“Consumers increasingly want choice and personalisation, whether that’s the type of coffee they drink, when they drink it or whether they prefer it hot or cold. Eletta Ultra gives us a strong product expression of that shift, so the campaign is built around a simple idea: there isn’t one definition of the perfect coffee. Hot or Cold, a De’Longhi coffee is always Perfetto.
“From a brand perspective, the challenge was to communicate our product innovation and versatility without reverting to conventional appliance advertising. Bringing together Brad Pitt and Spike Jonze allowed us to create something with genuine entertainment value while keeping the product and the ‘duo’ coffee experience at its heart.”
Launched globally in September, the film will run across broadcast, digital and social platforms.
