This article first appeared in Digital Edge, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on September 20, 2021 - September 26, 2021

Founded nearly 200 years ago, British chocolate maker Cadbury is globally known for its Dairy Milk chocolate, but it has also acquired distinctively local flavours with the Cadbury Dairy Milk Kopi C and Cadbury Dairy Milk Durian introduced in the last few years.

This year, the company launched the Cadbury Dairy Milk Pandan Coconut in tribute to one of the more familiar tastes that have shaped Malaysia’s identity. It also wants to give back to the community that inspired these flavours: specifically, the kuih (a local traditional dessert) makers.

“The Cadbury Dairy Milk Pandan Coconut is inspired by classic kuih-muih such as Seri Muka, Ketayap and Onde-Onde that are synonymous with the nation’s identity. In celebration of the flavours of Malaysia, Cadbury Malaysia wants to give back to the community that was part of the local flavour inspiration by putting their businesses on the map and helping promote them,” says Arpan Sur, head of marketing for Mondelez International, Malaysia and Singapore.

This initiative comes amid trying times for small kuih sellers in Malaysia, many of whom operate stalls and have no online presence. 

“In our conversations with the kuih vendors, we find ourselves moved at how hopeful they remain despite the drop in sales and traffic during this pandemic. Vendors have expressed frustration at keeping up with the changing regulations and shared that the overall reduction in movement has definitely affected them, as customers usually grab a bite for breakfast before heading to office or school. Some drop by for a tea time snack on the way home,” says Arpan. 

“They find themselves making less kuih to minimise wastage and, sometimes, they are forced to focus on making only the more popular selections, which disappoints some customers. Despite this, they remain optimistic, as they want to continue servicing their regular customers and neighbourhood.”

The #MyCadburyFlavours campaign will leverage the collective effort of Malaysians to highlight their favourite local kuih stalls via the hashtag on Instagram. Cadbury will collate these postings and turn them into paid ads on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube so that more Malaysians can support these sellers.

Cadbury suggests that users include as many details as possible about the stalls when they post the information on Instagram with the hashtag. For instance, they should note down the signature kuih sold by the stall, landmarks around the area and clear directions to the location. 

The campaign will run until Sept 30 and the company hopes to reach at least 10 million Malaysians across major social media channels. 

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