From Pubs To Cold Plunges

The way we socialise is evolving ~ from pubs to cold plunges. 

Is Heineken reacting to fun being redefined as active, intentional, and increasingly alcohol-free?

Heineken’s ad campaign Social Off Socials shows a world where influencers are ignored and people rediscover ‘real’ connection, over a beer. 

Gen Z is drinking less than any generation before them, and for the first time in decades, alcohol isn’t at the centre of youth culture. It’s becoming less relevant.

The alternative to drinking is no longer staying in ~ it’s getting out. Through social media, an alcohol-free lifestyle is becoming more visible & attractive.

Run clubs. Sunrise hikes. Floating saunas. Cold plunges. Wellness went mainstream. Social media is showing that an active lifestyle can be more appealing than dealing with a hangover.

In the past 5 years, short-form video has become the main form of influence. Compare that with the head start alcohol companies had in influencing what fun, freedom, and connection are supposed to look like (since the 1800s).

Now anyone can go viral. Celebrities & legacy brands no longer define the narrative. More people, especially Gen Z, want purpose before product.

Is Social Off Socials a critique of screen time, or the sign of an industry unsettled by a change it can’t control?

The ad ends with “Social networking since 1873,” everyone happy in a pub. But social networking, 150 years on, has started to look a little different.

In drinks ads, you never see customers actually drunk. Have brands always distanced themselves from the effects of what they sell? They promote connection but its always curated & polished.

By contrast, social media humanises experiences, making them more relatable.

While nights out are still shared on stories, people are waking up glad to not deal with a hangover.

Social media isn’t perfect, and screen time & comparison culture are problematic, but is it more dangerous than alcohol?

Through social media, Gen Z has created a new version of social life, where they control the narrative, and don’t need alcohol to feel connected. 

That doesn’t mean the old ways are gone. But new ones are here.