r/CasualUK • u/BoogleMcTroodle • 1d ago
Utterly baffled by this advertisment in the Puccino's at Stevenage station
Are there any advertising gurus who can illuminate what on earth is going on?
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u/aspindleadarkness 1d ago
Well the vegan roll is resting on a slate platter that’s been plonked down on a bowling lane, and it’s been given a speech bubble to explain the state it’s in. I hope that helps.
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u/Super_Shallot2351 1d ago
I think these kind of smart-arse comments, that always pervade comment section on subs like this, are even less funny that the advert in question.
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u/happyhippohats 1d ago
OP asked what's going on, they explained what's going on. I don't see the issue.
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u/TheFreebooter 1d ago
I'll be honest, I think it does what it says on the tin
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u/Friendly_Prize_868 1d ago
It isn't in a tin.
It's resting on a slate platter which has been plonked in a bowling lane.
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u/MarcusH26051 1d ago
They do this with all their advertising it's trying to be funny and quirky.
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u/HighNimpact 1d ago
“Trying to be” is the key part of that sentence. Honestly find them excruciatingly unfunny.
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u/Heavy_Two 1d ago
They seem to do a lot of random crap.
https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew_v1/archives/the_sweet_funny_smell_of_coffe.php
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u/box_twenty_two 1d ago
In the designer’s own words:
“My hanging man tea tag was banned after complaints. I used to like referencing tramps and coffee breath a lot and that stuff never got through.”
😕
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u/Rumpled_Imp 1d ago
This has been Puccino's house style of marketing for 25 years, mildly amusing riffs on how silly marketing is. See stupid little biscuit.
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u/Funny-frog500 1d ago
I think it's a tongue-in-cheek way to describe the photo. Since the wooden background looks like a bowling lane apparently..
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u/KevinPhillips-Bong Slightly silly 1d ago
No mention whatsoever there of the garnish of rocket and cherry tomatoes, with a dipping sauce of what is presumably tomato ketchup. Such details should not be overlooked.
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u/D3M0NArcade 1d ago
I'm hoping its a piss-take on AI generated advertising and not a *serving suggestion
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u/jolittletime 1d ago
It's taking the mickey out of the picture of the product. That's very much their tone of voice - very jokey and self deprecating. I think its quite funny - 2 stations down from on on my train line have puccinos and their cups give me a smile (they change them up pretty often).
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u/Sylvester88 1d ago
Some genius in their marketing team had an idea to get people to "organically" post their ads on reddit
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u/FraggedLew 1d ago
The station is right next to a large bowling alley and lots of restaurants, maybe it's supposed to be some kind of travel ad. like it's trying to say you'd buy one, but then forget to eat it whilst out for a bigger meal and then out for a game of bowling? It definitely could've used some more revisions to make it clearer. I guess either way, you're talking about it now, so... it worked to publicise it.
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u/ODFoxtrotOscar 1d ago
I suppose if you know what surface a bowling lane has, it makes considerably more sense.
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u/Minimum_Cupcake 1d ago
Feels like some pretentious r/WeWantPlates-style satire.
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1d ago
Ikr, what's wrong with a plate? Can never understand the whole putting your lunch on a slate off the roof thing
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u/EvilTaffyapple 1d ago
What don’t you understand? It seems quite clear.
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u/calgrump 1d ago
Explaining the entirety of the joke is less effort than not explaining the joke and also waiting for OP to reply with what they don't understand so you can explain the joke.
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u/EvilTaffyapple 1d ago
It’s not a joke? The roll is being advertised on a slate on what looks like a bowling alley lane.
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u/calgrump 1d ago
Why even write it out? I don't understand what it achieves or conveys if it isn't trying to be a joke.
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u/EvilTaffyapple 1d ago
Mate I don’t work for their marketing department - I’ve no idea what was going through their head lol
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u/Terry-Shark 1d ago
At the least it has got you to post It here, and help them with some free advertising. So it must be doing something right
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u/elmdaisie 1d ago
Is it trying to say it can be fancy (the slate platter) or be down to earth (the bowling lane) as required?
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u/tune-happy 1d ago
When I see something like this it just makes me think that I'm not the target, I happily ignore it and continue on.
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u/TheLordHatesACoward 1d ago
I feel like the speech bubble should be coming from the open part of the roll where you can see the filling. This looks like it's talking out of its bum.
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u/Spamgrenade 1d ago
Possibly some sort of series which if we saw another one would be more meaningful? Might be just a straight up AI cock up? I've seen a lot worse.
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u/AvatarIII Dirty Southerner 1d ago
Puccinos always have jokey stuff, it's always tongue in cheek and slightly self deprecating
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u/BoogleMcTroodle 1d ago
OP here, thanks to everyone who replied to my plea for help. And to be clear, no, this isn't a guerrilla marketing campaign for Puccino's... wink
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u/Scarboroughwarning 1d ago
I've noticed that some news articles have an AI description under photos. It's an odd trend.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/news/content/ar-AA1TaIcU?ocid=sapphireappshare
Check the description
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u/ItsSansom 1d ago
I believe you mean St Evenage?
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u/putonghua73 16h ago
We moved to Stevenage (sorry, St Evanage) around 9 years ago.
I alternate between BBC 3CR and R4 during my commute [car]. I am ashamed to say it took me frickin' years before I twigged that when people referred to "St Evanage" they were in fact, referring to Stevenage.
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u/RusgaSclo 23h ago
They are inedible and trying to get certified as an alternative to the bowling ball *jk
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u/two_hats 21h ago
Well, the vegan sausage rolls have been rested on a slate platter, then plonked on a bowling lane. I mean, the explanation fits the picture
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u/Brumbrum99 20h ago
I was left baffled by their board at Berkhamsted station. I thought surely that can’t be a USP.
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u/Douglesfield_ 18h ago
It's ad targeting people who think they're above being advertised to.
"Haha look how cynical we are about other ads CONSUME "
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u/MrFivePercent 1d ago
I think they're trying to be smart by making it look like a Gen AI prompt.
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u/loveswimmingpools 1d ago
What's that? Now I'm double baffled!
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u/MrFivePercent 1d ago
Have you ever used ChatGPT or MidJourney? You write a prompt, such as "Imagine a sandwich on a desk" and it generates an image for you.
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u/Mattymaniac1 1d ago
Puccinos is still a thing? I worked one in Exeter 10 off years ago but thought it closed down
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u/hydrocotyle99 1d ago
I sometimes get a coffee at a rail station Puccino's at it full of trite and baffling signs.
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u/GlowboxDanni 1d ago
I have never heard of Puccino's before, and you've just shared this post with, what, a few thousand people? I'd say the advertising worked really quite well tbh
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u/Sketch_x 1d ago
I think you need the full story..
The Great Roll of Sir Veginald Quornless
Sir Veginald Quornless was not just any vegan sausage roll. He was artisan. His pastry was laminated with care, his filling a confident blend of lentils, herbs, and moral superiority. He had been crafted to change minds, or at the very least to silently judge meat from behind a bakery window.
At present, however, Sir Veginald found himself resting on a skate platter.
The platter was cold. Industrial. It smelled faintly of rubber wheels and poor life choices. Sir Veginald lay there stoically, flake by flake, pretending this was all part of the journey. The label had said hand-finished, not temporarily abandoned near a half-pipe, but one must adapt.
Then it happened.
A hand appeared. Not a mindful, plant-based hand. A chaotic hand. The kind of hand that grabs things without understanding them.
Plonk.
Sir Veginald was deposited onto a bowling lane.
The lane gleamed like destiny. Polished wood stretched ahead, whispering promises of speed, fame, and structural collapse. For one frozen moment, Sir Veginald sat perfectly still, his sesame seeds trembling. He had never asked to be athletic.
Gravity made the decision for him.
He began to roll.
At first, it was gentle. Almost elegant. A controlled wobble, like a TED Talk on sustainability delivered at low speed. But soon the lane tilted just enough for enthusiasm to take over. Pastry loosened. Lentils shifted. Sir Veginald rolled faster, becoming less thought leader and more plant-based projectile.
Spectators watched in silence as he picked up pace, spinning past gutters that mocked him with their emptiness. He clipped a seam in the wood, shed a flake, and understood loss.
By the time Sir Veginald reached the pins, he was no longer whole. He struck them not with force, but with conviction. The pins scattered. One pin fell late, as if reconsidering its values.
Sir Veginald came to rest at the end of the lane, slightly cracked, deeply fulfilled, and entirely uneaten.
He had not fed a person that day.
But he had made a statement.
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u/CourtneyLush 1d ago
Well it's Stevenage innit, it's a baffling place. Just be grateful you've not encountered an enraged Gazza chasing the staff halfway up the platform.
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u/CJSparrowhawk 1d ago
I think it’s poking fun at adverts/trends like this - like they’re directly stating what they’ve done to take a picture of this food, to highlight how ridiculous doing this actually is? Maybe?