20 years of everyday joy - how Ballingslöv's classic concept was renewed

This year marks 20 years since Navigator was commissioned to develop a new brand promise and communication concept for Ballingslöv. After extensive joint branding work, the concept of "Everyday Joy" was coined, a pioneering expression at the time, focusing on the soft values of having a nicely designed and well-functioning kitchen. Just in time for the anniversary, it was time to update the now classic concept. The result? A creative play on words that gave Vardagsglädje new life - and even more possibilities.

Distinguishing with soft values

Since its inception in 1929, Ballingslöv has been one of Sweden's leading manufacturers of kitchens, bathrooms and storage solutions. The company was founded in the small village of Ballingslöv in Skåne and began its journey by producing furniture and fittings. During the mid-20th century, the business developed rapidly and specialized in kitchen interiors.

In the early 2000s, Ballingslöv wanted to find new ways to differentiate itself from its competitors, who all talked a lot about function and materials from a technical rather than emotional perspective. Most of the sales were made via the building materials trade, which made it even more difficult to convey soft values during the decision-making process.

Cooperation with Navigator

In its ambition to renew itself, Ballingslöv started a collaboration with Navigator and in 2005 the new brand promise and communication concept "Everyday Joy" was launched.

"What we wanted to communicate with the concept can be summarized in the expression: Everyday happiness is when we realize in the middle of everyday life how good we have it", says Niclas Bergenblad, Creative Director at Navigator. "Through Vardagsglädje, we were able to focus on all the positive emotions and soft values that a modern and functional kitchen brings to everyday life. In doing so, we changed the view of kitchen communication traditionally based on USPs such as solid wood and a 20-year warranty."

The new concept was rolled out widely, with advertising on TV, cinema, radio and a wide range of national media. The communication was reinforced by emphasizing modern features such as kitchen islands and open floor plans. As time went on, Ballingslöv also opened more of its own stores, which made it easier to support soft communication all the way from awareness in the media to decisions at retailers.

This was one of the original films that helped establish the concept in the market.

Updated concept with word games

This year marks 20 years since the concept was launched, and Ballingslöv felt it needed to be given new life. Partly to stand out and strengthen its position in the external market, and partly to create a new spark internally among employees and retailers.

To visually reinforce the concept of everyday joy, a circular word picture was created and used in the communication ahead. It is intended to help spread joy by evoking a playful individual with a happy mouth, a bit like a smiley face.

"We have worked with the concept of Everyday Joy consistently and long-term in many forms over the years, but now it was time for renewal," says Martin Lundell, Sales and Marketing Manager at Ballingslöv AB. "Together with Navigator, we were able to take the concept to a new level through different approaches and creative outlets."

The updated concept is based on a word game where Everyday Joy is divided into three words and formed: Everyday Joy. Same word, same meaning - but with a more playful and broader interpretation. By splitting the words, the concept also became more scalable. The word joy could now be swapped and replaced with other words such as: Every day inspiration, Every day food, Every day chaos.

Example of a sketch used to present the thinking behind the word game.

Creative ideation process with the support of AI

The new, flexible concept provided more opportunities to develop communication and create scalable creative ideas that worked equally well in-store, on social media and on TV. To keep the visual part of the ideation process moving quickly, AI was used as an important tool.

Here are some examples of visualizations using AI.

With the help of detailed prompts, Navigator could easily and clearly visualize their ideas in the form of sketch images and storyboards. Ballingslöv then took over and further developed them into finished units for, for example, TV commercials, SoMe material and store campaigns.

Here is an example of a sketch around the idea of the Every Day Hack. 

Here is an example of a ready-made social media video. 

During Ballingslöv's spring conference in early March, the official launch of the concept took place in a festive setting together with all employees and retailers.

"It was great fun to be able to show all the new possibilities with the concept and at the same time create a real new momentum for everyone who works with the brand. Now we're really looking forward to bringing the ideas to market in different channels in 2025," says Martin Lundell.

Here's an example of one of the new films on Every Day's Joy, produced in collaboration with Attraction Film of Sweden.

Working together for over two decades

Navigator and Ballingslöv have continued their collaboration continuously over the past 20 years, but it has varied somewhat depending on market conditions and Ballingslöv's own resources. The collaboration has included, for example, brand-building advertising, creative campaigns, TV and radio advertising, catalog and brochure productions, ÅF concepts, store materials, web structure, personas and customer journeys, visualization tools, HubSpot implementation, and much more.

"Navigator has been an important part of our brand journey over the past 20 years," says Martin Lundell. "They've provided everything from strategic advice and creative ideas to additional production resources when needed."

With a focus on quality, design and functionality, Ballingslöv has become the obvious choice for Swedish homes. Over the past decades, Ballingslöv has continued to evolve and modernize, while maintaining its craftsmanship and Scandinavian design language. By combining innovative solutions with timeless design, the brand has adapted to changing trends and customer needs.

Examples of more units marketing Ballingslöv with the concept of Everyday Joy.

Today, Ballingslöv is part of the Ballingslöv International group and is represented in several countries, but the strong roots in Swedish quality and tradition live on.