I’m loving the saucy brand banter between Ikea and Durex

(Image credit: Durex)

Last week we spotlighted Ikea's latest cheeky campaign which saw the brand sliding into sleepy shoppers DMs, soothing their restless sleep with a free mattress promotion. Hopping on the trend, Durex has responded with a saucy ad campaign of its own – but unlike Ikea, it's not encouraging customers to hit the hay.

Some of the best adverts of all time centre around playful brand parodies and clever clapbacks – something that Durex nails while still staying on brand. The candid DM style campaign brings us into an immersive new era of advertising and it's refreshing to see brands putting their own spin on the trend.

In its salacious new ad, Durex is the one sending the risky late-night "U up?" DM to Ikea. Responding the next morning, the furnishing brand asks "Oh Hej there pookie. How was your sleep?" only to be met with the bold reply: "Sleep? Nah… We were busy keeping people up."

The ad is a clever play on Ikea's campaign, playfully embracing its cheeky nature in line with Durex's brand. Slyly appropriating Ikea's campaign with its own promotion, Durex's ad is a prime example of how to execute a playful brand beef. If you missed it, take a look at the original Ikea ad and for more brand back-and-forth ads, check out the brands that fight the most online.

Natalie Fear is Creative Bloq's staff writer. With an eye for trending topics and a passion for internet culture, she brings you the latest in art and design news. Natalie also runs Creative Bloq’s Day in the Life series, spotlighting diverse talent across the creative industries. Outside of work, she loves all things literature and music (although she’s partial to a spot of TikTok brain rot).

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