What does ‘challenger brand’ mean in 2025?

Challenger brands cut through the sameness epidemic by standing for something and showing it with style.

In 2025, being a challenger brand isn’t just about taking on the big dogs, it’s about having a sharper point of view and moving with purpose.

It’s a mindset, not a market share. 

The challenger brand today is bold, clear on what they stand for, and unafraid to zig while everyone else zags.

The smartest ones are using strategic, insight-driven and entertaining (yes you can have all three!) video content to make that mindset visible. Because when you’ve got a distinct personality, big ambition, and something important to say, how you say it matters. 

A great brand or campaign film or suite of episodic content can level the playing field. It’s the difference between being a promising small brand and becoming a serious challenger, the kind that gets noticed, remembered, and shared.

Examples of the world's first challenger brands

These brands paved the way by taking bold, strategic stances against category leaders:

Virgin Atlantic – Took on British Airways by being cheeky, customer-focused, and stylish. It challenged the stuffy image of air travel with personality and innovation.

Avis – Famously embraced its underdog status with the legendary line: “We’re number two. We try harder.” A brilliant example of turning second place into a strategic advantage.

Apple (in its early days) – Positioned itself as the creative, human alternative to IBM and Microsoft. The “Think Different” campaign defined it as a challenger brand for rebels and rule-breakers. The internet breaking film is a world-class example of challenger communication.

Innocent Drinks – Entered a crowded drinks market and stood out with a playful tone of voice, honest ingredients, and a purpose-led brand personality.

Ben & Jerry’s – Took on big ice cream brands not just with quirky flavours, but with an iconic social mission that challenged corporate norms.

Dollar Shave Club – Disrupted the shaving category with humour, direct-to-consumer convenience, and a jab at the overpriced razor giants.

Oatly – Didn’t just sell oat milk. They took a stand for sustainability and called out the dairy industry with confident, provocative messaging.

Dyson – Took on vacuum giants by obsessing over design, engineering, and user experience and redefined the category in the process.

At Be The Fox, we help brands do just that. Whether it’s a gutsy launch film, a social series that builds community, or a cinematic TV spot with challenger energy baked in, we know how to craft creative that punches above its weight and feels entirely true to who you are.

In a world full of noise, challenger brands win by showing up differently. Not louder, better. And we’re here to make sure they do.

Every quarter we’re highlighting a standout challenger brand and unpacking what they’re doing right and how the right kind of content is helping them get there.

First up is Who Gives a Crap! 🧻

Toilet Paper That Doesn’t Take Itself Too Seriously. Except When It Comes to Impact

Challenger Credentials

Launched in 2012 with a crowdfunding campaign and a lofty (and slightly cheeky) mission, to improve sanitation in the developing world, Who Gives a Crap set out to disrupt a boring, often overlooked category. Toilet paper wasn’t exactly a hotbed of branding innovation. That’s exactly where they saw opportunity.

Their success hasn’t just come from selling sustainable loo roll, it’s come from making people care about something. And that starts with fearless storytelling.

Branding & Tone of Voice: Irreverent, Human, and Hugely Effective

Who Gives a Crap’s tone is one of their sharpest tools. Every touchpoint is laced with playful copy that’s both disarming and witty, while remaining intelligent.

They manage to:

• Be funny without being flippant.

• Talk about serious issues (2 billion people lack access to proper sanitation) without lecturing.

• Make sustainability feel cool, not earnest or exclusive.

They treat their audience like smart people with a sense of humour and they know who they’re speaking to by drawing on culturally relevant trending topics.

They don’t try to sound like a ‘green brand.’ They sound like themselves and their audience - human, honest, slightly silly, and that’s what cuts through. And as 85% of Gen Z and Millennials consider sustainability important when buying, WGAC is hitting the right mark with the right people.

Video Content: Big on Ideas, Low on Ego

Their video content follows the same formula: clever, purposeful, and lo-fi in the best way. A few notable types:

Kickstarter Origin Film

Their original crowdfunding video set the tone: founder-led, self-aware, packed with personality. It was far from glossy with their founder sitting on a toilet for 50 hours! It was real and it worked: they hit their goal in 50 hours and sold out their first product run.

Explainer & Mission Videos

They’ve created simple, punchy explainers on:

• How toilet paper can change the world

• Where their profits go (50% donated to clean water/sanitation non-profits)

• How their product compares environmentally
  

Rather than slick animations or corporate voiceovers, these are often narrated by founders or team members which adds trust and warmth. The tone is “we’re in this together,” not “we're preaching at you.”

Amen.

Seasonal & Social Shorts

They also use social to drop highly shareable content:

• Toilet paper unboxing videos (yes, really)

• Satirical holiday ads (“Give a Crap this Christmas”)

• Purpose-driven campaigns tied to sanitation awareness days

They’re partial to a Pedro Pascal meme and we’re absolutely here for that. (📞 us Pedro)

Their films often lean into humour and visual gags to keep it entertaining while still having their key messages land. In short, they've built a bog roll based fandom.

Sustainability Focus: Baked Into Everything

This isn’t a brand that added sustainability later. It’s the foundation. For established brands, doing the right thing by our planet and not greenwashing has to be a vital aspect of their brand and the way they do business. 84% of consumers say they would stop supporting a brand for having poor environmental practices.

Key pillars:

• 50% of profits go to building toilets and sanitation systems globally
  

• Recycled or bamboo-only paper: no virgin trees
  

• Plastic-free packaging: beautifully designed, and often reused by customers for storage, wrapping, or crafts
  

• Carbon neutral shipping
  

• Transparency: Their annual Impact Report is clear, well-designed, and written in plain English
  

They treat sustainability not as a marketing angle, but a design challenge. How do you make people feel great about buying toilet paper? You make them laugh, then you make them proud.

Why It Works

• They’ve created a clear emotional loop: You laugh → you learn something → you feel good → you buy → you do good.
  

• They use video to show their values, not just say them. Whether it’s a founder going on an epic journey to thank their millionth customer, or a community project being funded, the camera is a tool for transparency, connection, and storytelling.
  

• They challenge the category visually, verbally, and ethically. And it works across every format from Instagram reels to box copy.
  

Who Gives a Crap Challenger Summary

Who Gives a Crap proves that:

• You can build a brand around toilet paper. 🧻

• People will engage with sustainability if it’s delivered with wit and warmth. 🤣

• Challenger brands don’t need massive budgets, just massive clarity on what they stand for. ❤️

Be The Fox is a creative content super shop built for now. We deliberately deliver small agency service, through big agency experience. Perfect for any challenger brand wanting to make big impact within their resources.

We're powered by years of hands-on expertise at global broadcasters, top advertising agencies, & the biggest social platforms, but we do it with the care and attention of a boutique agency. And we make every shoot what it should be, bloody good fun.

Get to know our work and book in a chat.

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