We have been working with the Guide Dogs UK to create the smell of the Gruffalo as part of a campaign to highlight experiences of children with sight loss and how by making adaptions, the world can be made more inclusive.
A world first, these “scent kits” feature a different smell for each of the five well-loved characters. A quick-witted mouse that smells like cupcakes, a silly old fox with the scent of cut grass. An owl which smells like a freshly poured cup of tea, or a sneaky, slithering snake with a smoky scent. Then there is the Gruffalo himself, a stinky leathery barnyard smell that permeates from the depths of the deep, dark wood. Each scent was developed with the input of Guide Dogs service users to ensure they were at the heart of this.
80% of how we learn is visual so by creating a sensory version of this beloved 20-year-old story for the first time, it is fun for the whole family and children with visual impairment will feel more included in story time.
The media got as excited by the Gruffalo as we did, securing a whopping 110 broadcast hits, with the likes of BBC Breakfast, Times Radio and 5Live. Online coverage appeared on Sky News, BBC News, BBC Newsround, Daily Star print as well as 13 consumer titles including Yahoo! News UK, MSN and Toy News. The story was also syndicated to 29 regional titles.
Celeb giants including Katie Price, Stephen Fry, Fearne McCann and Greg Wallace went in on the action, reposting our activation to their socials and taking our campaign out to all their followers. We also partnered with six parenting influencers to create organic content documenting their families using the kits; from @london_triples (129k) to @latteandlullabies (35k).
All in all; a fun way to raise awareness of the Guide Dogs Children and Young Persons Services.
