Amsterdam, 2nd January 2025: Heineken®’s brand new ‘0.0 Reasons Needed’ campaign launching this January has been designed to send a clear message: if someone goes dry, it doesn’t matter why – it’s their choice.
Whilst social pressures around moderation still exist, Heineken® hopes to shatter the stigma associated with choosing not to drink alcohol, defending people’s right to make judgement-free choices. Through the new ‘0.0 Reasons Needed’ campaign, the brand aims to uplift those who simply want to enjoy a Heineken® 0.0 for its great taste, ensuring everyone is empowered to embrace moderation – if they want to. The series of TVCs poke fun at some of the stereotypes associated with choosing not to drink alcohol, such as assuming someone must be the designated driver, or they’re on a health kick.
Regardless of what people might assume when they see you enjoying a Heineken 0.0, there’s no special reason behind it—just the great taste. The TV commercials, directed by Hanna Maria Hendrich and filmed in Barcelona, will be airing globally in January 2025.
The campaign taps into the wider cultural point that people’s drinking habits are changing, and questions whether we need abstinence months like ‘Dry January’ and ‘Sober October’ in the diary to choose non-alcoholic options. Along with the campaign TVCs, Heineken® 0.0 is launching new research from University of Oxford Professor Charles Spence to show that despite the acceptability of low and non-alcoholic drinks being at a high, choosing one can still raise eyebrows.
Nabil Nasser, Global Head of Heineken® Brand says, “The launch of Heineken® 0.0 in 2017 revolutionised the non-alcoholic space. A premium, high-quality brand offering a 0.0 has helped make moderation cool. It’s exciting to see this new research uncover a growing social acceptance of non-alcoholic drinks; not just accepted, but also something people see as a cool and confident choice. That said, you can see there is still work to be done with the research spotlighting low and no alcohol judgement still exists, so we need to be dynamic and inventive around how we tackle these stereotypes. We’re proud of our great tasting Heineken® 0.0 and its role in helping to remove the stigmas in this space, so people can enjoy it without being judged. Perhaps someone is the designated driver, or maybe they just really fancy a refreshing Heineken® 0.0 – our latest campaign shows the bottom line is, you don’t need a special reason to go alcohol- free.”
Bruno Bertelli, Global CEO LePub, CCO Publicis Worldwide, added: “This campaign challenges the prejudices around the consumption of alcohol-free beer. Heineken 0.0 isn’t just an alternative— its great taste seamlessly fits into real life’s moments. Good flavour speaks for itself, without the need for a special reason.”
Heineken®’s study – which surveyed 11,842 adults across five developed non-alcohol beer markets UK, USA, Spain, Japan (over the legal drinking age up to 75), and Brazil (18 – 65) found that Gen-Z (aged 18 to 26 years old) are facing social pressures around alcohol consumption the most.
The survey found 21% of Gen Z in these five markets have been called-out about their choice of a non-alcoholic drink and say they have concealed drinking low or non-alcoholic drinks because of social pressures. The report also found that more than one-third have felt pressure to drink alcohol in some social situations.
Gen Z men over the legal drinking age are amongst the most likely to feel choosing an alcohol- free drink could be a social faux pas. 38% of men in this age group say they would be willing to drink no or low-alcohol versions of alcoholic drinks, but only if their friends do too. If and when Gen Z men choose to drink a low or no-alcohol version of alcoholic drinks, they feel they need to explain and justify their choice of drink and even feel like “outsiders” for doing so (29%). Heineken® has created its latest campaign to tackle these stigmas, supporting people’s right to make judgement-free choices.
Charles Spence, Professor of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford, explains: “Our study has uncovered some fascinating insights into evolving societal attitudes towards alcohol consumption. For many, alcohol is no longer the default in social situations – we’re seeing a shift towards more mindful consumption. Yet, in cultures where drinking alcohol is still predominantly viewed as the norm, opting out can be stigmatised. This is particularly true for Gen Zers and millennials. For generations, alcohol has played a central role in the way humans socialise, therefore dominant assumptions and stereotypes surrounding our drinking habits remain deeply ingrained in society.”
Not everyone is concerned with judgement of their drinking choices. In fact, we’re in the early stages of acceptance becoming the new normal. The study found a fifth of drinkers now say they moderate between alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages at evening social gatherings with friends or family.
Plenty of people feel secure in their balanced lifestyle – regardless of what others might think of them – and many people admire those who are sober or choose to drink in moderation. More participants acknowledge non-alcoholic drinkers as “cool” (9%) and “respectable” (25%) rather than “uncool” (4%) or “boring” (6%). It is also seen as the confident choice for “dry dating”, with over a third (35%) of those who drink low or no alcohol drinks choosing this as their beverage when on an evening date.
These early signs from non-alcoholic beer leading markets point to the dawn of a new, post- sober curious era.
