Pitch playbook

Hey Song Corporation

黑松 · FMCG · TWSE 1234
Quick read
  • WedgeIntegrated AOR pitch: position WPP (GroupM + a creative anchor like Ogilvy/VML) as the consolidator of a fragmented roster post-100週年, with promise of 15–25% A&P efficiency at flat output — directly responsive to the revenue-decline pressure.
  • WhyMulti-agency, multi-brand roster with no consolidated AOR — 韋恩咖啡 sits with Dentsu MB, 沙士 has worked with 靈智/Lowe and historically 雪芃/SHAPE. Each line essentially runs its own pitch.
  • Who張斌堂 · Chairman
Pitch wedges
Entry angles for an account with no public AOR — frame around fit and capability, not incumbent replacement
  1. W1Integrated AOR pitch: position WPP (GroupM + a creative anchor like Ogilvy/VML) as the consolidator of a fragmented roster post-100週年, with promise of 15–25% A&P efficiency at flat output — directly responsive to the revenue-decline pressure.
  2. W2FIN reinvention: zero published creative agency and the brand sits in 3rd place behind 舒跑/寶礦力. Pitch a gaming/esports + hydration-occasion repositioning (Garena, AIC, Taipei Game Show) — clean white space; FIN price (NT$25 vs competitors' NT$29) supports gaming-student demo.
  3. W3茶尋味 + 韋恩咖啡 RTD modernization: both lines under-marketed vs Uni-President's 茶裏王 and 左岸. Bring Wavemaker data + a creator-economy production model (Mindshare's content studios).
  4. W4沙士 next-decade thesis: the 茄子蛋 / 張雨生 nostalgia loop is six years old. Pitch the 'post-100' brand platform — what does 沙士 stand for in the next 100? Use the 100週年 retrospective as a natural inflection point.
  5. W5Heritage-brand commerce: WPP's commerce capability (Hogarth + Choreograph data) to monetize the 100週年collectibles long tail (悠遊卡, Tomica, museum) into a recurring lifestyle/D2C channel.
Current creative landscape
Which shops have we actually seen working with this brand — fragmented? In-house? Project-based?
  • Multi-agency, multi-brand roster with no consolidated AOR — 韋恩咖啡 sits with Dentsu MB, 沙士 has worked with 靈智/Lowe and historically 雪芃/SHAPE. Each line essentially runs its own pitch.
  • FIN, 茶尋味 have NO publicly attributed creative agency — likely shorter project briefs or in-house + freelance creative routing.
  • 2020 decision to zero out TV spend is structural — opens the door for digitally-native shops and squeezes legacy AOR-style retainers.
  • 100週年rollout in 2025 is fragmented: illustrator collab (馬賽Kyo), Tomica IP licensing, retail-museum activation (微風廣場), sweepstakes platform — suggests no single lead agency orchestrating, room for an integrated partner.
  • Revenue softness in 2025 (Mar 2025 -6.29% YoY, Q3 2025 revenue -14.57% YoY per statementdog) — beverage core under pressure; CFO/board likely scrutinising marketing ROI.
Marketing leadership
Who runs marketing — pitch entry points
  • 張斌堂 (Chang Pin-Tang)Chairman / 董事長
    since

    Listed as company representative. User's prompt mentioned 張道榕 but public records consistently show 張斌堂 as current chairman — flag this discrepancy.

  • 張智鈞 (Chang Chih-Chun)Vice President / 副總經理
    since

    Cited as driver of product innovation and collaborative partnerships. Likely the senior exec with marketing ownership but not a CMO-titled role.

  • 彭星凱 (Peng Hsing-Kai)Design lead behind 2017 沙士 packaging redesign
    since

    External creative collaborator credited with the '清爽der' rebrand that unlocked the youth re-positioning playbook still in use today.

Marketing posture
How they show up in market right now

Heritage masterbrand executing a sustained 'old brand, new creative' play since the 2017 沙士 redesign and 2020 70th-anniversary digital pivot. 100-year milestone in 2025 is the largest brand moment in a generation, expressed mainly through collectibles, retail experience, and illustrator-led nostalgia content rather than a single anthem campaign. Tonality is youth-skewed nostalgia (18–29 target on 沙士), with coffee and sports-drink lines run as discrete franchises. No unified CMO voice or AOR — creative decisions appear distributed across brand managers + VP-level oversight, with external partners selected per project. Heavy lean on digital, music IP, designer collabs, and PR/retail activations.

Recent campaigns
What the incumbent has produced — strength vs fatigue
  • 2025 · Unattributed in press; likely in-house brand team + multiple project shops

  • 2024 · Dentsu Taiwan / 台灣電通 MB

  • 2020 · 靈智廣告 (Lowe / Mullen Lowe Taiwan) for the spot; production credited; SHAPE Advertising / 雪芃 has long-running relationship with the masterbrand

Decision makers
Who to engage on day one
  • 張斌堂Chairman
  • 張智鈞VP
  • Brand Manager — 韋恩咖啡Unidentified; works with Dentsu MB
  • Brand Manager — FIN / 茶尋味Unidentified
What to avoid

Do not pitch as 'modernize a tired heritage brand' — Hey Song's leadership is acutely proud of the 2017–2020 turnaround and the 100週年 narrative. Avoid generic 'digital transformation' framing (they did that already, and led the category in dropping TV). Do not propose displacing Dentsu on 韋恩咖啡 with a creative-only argument — that win is fresh and award-decorated; instead build adjacent share on FIN/茶尋味/沙士-next. Do not over-index on Mandarin-Taipei trend-driven creative — the brand's equity is intergenerational, Taiwan-island-wide; avoid culture-jacking. Tread carefully around the family-business decision dynamic — pitching only at brand-manager level will stall.

Competitive set
  • Uni-President beverages (1216) — direct on tea, coffee, sports drink
  • Standard Foods (1227)
  • Veedan / 維他露 (1232) — owns 舒跑, the FIN nemesis
  • Wei Chuan (1201)
  • Otsuka/味王 Pocari Sweat — sports drink
  • Suntory Boss / 伯朗 (Mr. Brown by 金車) — RTD coffee
  • Coca-Cola Taiwan (former bottler relationship now ended) — still a structural rival in CSD
Open questions
What research couldn't verify — qualify before pitching
  • Who is the actual head of marketing/CMO-equivalent at Hey Song? (No public title — verify via LinkedIn Sales Navigator + 104.com.tw posting history)
  • Is 張道榕 a family-member director, or did the user mis-recall 張斌堂? Cross-check TWSE MOPS director filings.
  • What is the actual A&P line in the 2024 annual report (operating expense breakdown)? Pulls the 'NT$300M+' estimate from inference to fact.
  • Does FIN have ANY current esports/gaming sponsorship? (Negative finding in this pass — confirm via Garena/HKES partner lists.)
  • Status of the Coca-Cola Taiwan bottling legacy — what equipment/distribution assets transferred, and does that create margin headroom for marketing?
  • Who handled the 100週年 retail-museum and illustrator activations — internal events team, a PR shop (Apex/Ogilvy PR?), or a boutique?
  • After the 2025 revenue softness, is there an active 2026 cost-restructuring program that would dictate pitch timing?

Researched 2026-05-11 · confidence medium — campaign-level credits (Dentsu on 韋恩, Lowe/雪芃 on 沙士) are well-sourced via Brain Magazine and trade press; org-chart specifics below VP level are not public; chairman name in user prompt (張道榕) does not match public filings (張斌堂) and needs verification. · every claim sourced