Back in 2019 we set about shaping a brand appeal for the nursery products manufacturer, Graco that would speak to parents with an authentic tone of voice. We coined it as sharing the ‘lows and lols’ of parenting.

In 2022 we embarked on a journey to take this concept to a deeper level and to build a firmer reputation for Graco being a champion for real parenting.

Graco is a value-led brand in the UK. Good, dependable products at fantastic prices. This provided us with an excellent foundation to build a brand that stands with parents, not selling dreams, but shining a light on the messy reality of life with little ones. Collaborating with experts to tackle some of the more challenging issues of parenting we provided some much-needed solace and support. We established the microsite, The Graco Village, which became the destination platform to house all the new content.

Parenting media supported each campaign to enable us to discover exclusive insights about our audience to create campaigns that would resonate. Our initial campaigns looked at pre and postnatal depression, the pressures on new fathers, and the challenges of traveling with young children. These were followed by a focus on establishing a healthy sleep routine and educating on the R129 legislation.

In 2024 we developed the concept Family Matters. While news reports focussed on the cost-of-living crisis, we investigated the impact that swelling living costs were having on young families. The insights we revealed were more hard hitting than we could have imagined.  63% of the mums revealed that finances are affecting their mental health, and just under half (46%) admitted it is affecting the relationship with their partner.

Parents were making life changing decisions based on financial worries. 17% of the mothers have returned to work from maternity leave earlier than planned, almost two thirds (61%) have reduced their food bill, 8% have applied for social housing, 6% have sold their car and 4% have had to move house. In life-changing consequences, almost two in 10 (17%) have cancelled plans to extend their family and many more attributed problems in their relationship to money concerns. It was hard reading.

Extending our partnership with PANDAs the pre and post-natal mental health charity, we worked with money influencers and tax specialists with profiles selected to resonate with parents living in financial crisis. Parent influencers shared their personal experiences and parenting media spread the word wider.

We secured 37 pieces of highly targeted coverage, which delivered 189 brand mentions, 79 clicks to the Graco Village website, and a potential reach of just under three million parents.

We are so incredibly proud of this campaign and how we have grown from the fledgling idea of a brand that shone a light on parenting and the ‘lows and lols’ of real life, into a brand making a much deeper connection with its audience, delivering important support when they need it the most.  



Working in close partnership with our client and supporting their retail partnerships, we have witnessed the brand revenue grow 200% in 6 years.  Luisa Rollins-Svensson, Graco Trade & Consumer Marketing Manager comments on our partnership: ‘We are under no illusion the role vista plays in our growth and ongoing success.‘