Nando’s embraces the art of being wrong with cheeky “PERi-BBQ” launch

Nando's is taking a wildly unconventional approach to introduce PERi-BBQ, its first barbecue finisher, with a campaign that fully commits to chaos, mischief, and intentional “mistakes”. Rather than follow the usual food marketing formula, the brand has partnered with Chariot Agency to unveil a launch that feels deliberately offbeat and proudly unpolished.

PERi-BBQ is not a new heat level. It is a finisher that sits on top of a customer’s usual PERi-PERi order. The brand describes it as a flavour that feels familiar, but with an unexpected jolt meant to shake up the usual routine. That idea became the creative springboard for the campaign line: “Taste the wild side of BBQ”.

Lim Siew Ling, marketing director of Nando’s Malaysia and Singapore, said the new finisher needed a launch that captured its playful personality. She explained that PERi-BBQ “brings a fun twist to your usual Nando’s order”. She added that the brand wanted the launch to feel playful and unexpected, mirroring the reaction people have when tasting it for the first time.

Don't miss: Nando’s Malaysia finds truth and comedy in everyday stories through animation

To bring that feeling to life, the campaign embraces visual disruption at every turn. The most eye-catching example is the digital out-of-home (DOOH) ad: a stark black billboard that simply reads “[insert chicken image]”, with no imagery at all. No chicken, no food photography, no cues. The absence is the point. It demands attention precisely because it looks wrong.

The electronic direct mail (EDM) takes the same energy further. The entire layout is flipped upside down, while the subject line reads “Nobody reads their email”. The contradiction is intentional. It lures people into opening it simply to confirm whether it is real or a mistake.

The work subverts norms on YouTube too. Instead of a full-frame skippable pre-roll, Nando’s uses only the left side of the screen, leaving the rest blank. When viewers hover past the skip button, the spot escalates into even more absurdity, pushing the feeling that something is not quite right.

According to Christyna Fong, creative director at Chariot, the work needed to feel “fun and a little unhinged”. She shared that the team aimed to create work that “looks like a mistake, but in all the right ways”. The strategy was to tap into that instinctive moment when audiences sense something is off, nudging them to reconsider their usual Nando’s order and try PERi-BBQ instead.

She also shared with A+M that the campaign was also built on the notion that since the flavour of the PERi-BBQ is so wild, that the brains of those who taste it gets shocked, and they end up forgetting how to do things. "So, we applied that to the context of our ads, like forgetting to put in the image of a chicken." 

On Fong's take about reimagining out-of-home ads, she said: "It's less about the format, and more about how we express the wildness of the flavour in the context of DOOH. We're not game changers here, but instead of just slapping a key visual onto a billboard, our main goal was to be contextual, keeping the jokes as visual as possible (even if it's an omission of an image)."

Across all touchpoints, the brand leans into the mischievous theme without apology. Every misplaced shot, off-kilter frame, or self-deprecating headline becomes a metaphor for the flavour’s own unpredictability. The approach sets it apart from typical QSR campaigns that rely on appetising visuals or high-polish food styling. PERi-BBQ is available for a limited time at participating Nando’s restaurants in Malaysia beginning this December. The campaign is currently running across OOH, YouTube, programmatic, and social.

Throughout the year, Nando’s Malaysia released an animated content series bringing to life stories inspired by real experiences of its restaurant staff, known as “Nandocas.” The campaign, also developed by Chariot Agency, takes a lighthearted look at everyday interactions between staff and customers, turning them into short, relatable stories.

Chariot explained that using animation for the series was both a creative and practical choice. The agency saw it as a charming and sustainable way to tell stories, allowing them to maintain a consistent stream of content without constantly chasing trends or sourcing new talent. They also noted that TikTok audiences had shown a growing appreciation for animated content, which gave the team confidence to pursue this approach.

All videos were hand-drawn and voiced by Chariot’s internal creative team, with no AI tools involved at any stage.

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