How an Experiential Stunt in Finland Challenged Lobbying Norms and Sparked National Debate

Lobbying typically gets a bad rap, conjuring images of backdoor deals corrupting politicians with money. But over in Finland, a creative agency challenged these norms with an unusual lobbying campaign using experiential marketing.

Unlike many lobbing efforts that happen behind closed doors, the campaign for Finnish retail giant S Group garnered national media attention and galvanized supporters and critics across the country. It was created by United Imaginations, an agency founded last year by three former TBWA\Helsinki executives. 

The context is this: Finland’s pharmacy market is one of the strictest and monopolized in the European Union. Medicines, including cold medicines or painkillers, are only allowed to be sold at privately-owned community pharmacies. 

S-Group, Finland’s largest retail chain, is lobbying for a system akin to other European countries, where medicines could be sold in retail chains, supermarkets and via online pharmacies (while still under the supervision of professional pharmacists). The retailer said in a statement that it “wants Finnish consumers to benefit from more affordable medicines, better opening hours and new pharmacy services.”  

Using experiential techniques

To challenge the status quo, S Group enlisted United Imaginations, which decided to bring this debate to the public. The agency built a model pharmacy in the heart of Finnish capital Helsinki. 

In the prototype pharmacy, people can browse the shelves and experience first-hand a different way of accessing medicines–thus drawing their own conclusions about whether to change the system. 

“S Group wanted to rethink what lobbying could be in a modern society open to debate and new perspectives,” said Jyrki Poutanen, creative director and founding member of United Imaginations. “No hiding behind gimmicky messages, no hush-hush about their purpose. They wanted to be completely open about their role in the conversation.”

The campaign took a turn when a critic noticed a typo on a package of fake vitamin D, which used the incorrect unit of micrograms instead of milligrams. The error sparked a debate in Finnish media, with the opposition arguing that supermarkets had no right to sell any type of medicine. 

But that mistake, which was then fixed, ended up bringing more visibility to the campaign. The model pharmacy became headline news in Finland and started a national conversation about having a more open and competitive pharmacy market.