[JUDGING] Centra Ireland
Section: Social Media Strategy: Brand
Organisation Name: Centra Ireland
General Strategy Questions
Name Of Brand Client
Centra Ireland
Name Of Brand Client Copy
Yes
Personpeople Who Led This Campaign
Emma Henry, Michelle Cahill, Jamie Griffin
Do You Use Alt Text In Your Images And Caption Your Videos
Yes
What Objective For Campaign
The objective of Centra’s social media strategy was to build brand relevance, engagement and cultural connection, particularly among younger, socially connected audiences, while ensuring social continued to support key brand and commercial priorities.
We wanted to move beyond traditional retail messaging and create a social presence that people actively choose to engage with. This meant positioning Centra as an entertaining and recognisable part of everyday Irish life – joining cultural conversations, reacting at the speed of social and showcasing our products, people and communities in ways that feel natural to each platform.
A key objective was to strengthen Centra’s connection with Gen Z and younger Millennial audiences, using platforms such as TikTok and Instagram to reach them through humour, trends, entertainment and food discovery.
At the same time, the strategy needed to deliver for the wider business. Social supports key campaigns, My Centra, product launches, offers, sponsorships and community initiatives, integrating these messages into engaging content rather than relying solely on traditional advertising.
Ultimately, our objective was to create a social presence that builds brand love and keeps Centra culturally relevant, while turning attention and engagement into meaningful value for the business.
Outline Your Strategy For This Campaign
Centra’s social media strategy is built around one clear ambition: to make Centra a digital-first brand at the forefront of modern Irish culture.
Already embedded in everyday Irish life, our opportunity is to bring that role to social in a way that feels entertaining, relevant and native to each platform. Our Live Every Day positioning comes to life through four connected territories: culture, entertainment, convenience and community.
Rather than treating social as a traditional retail advertising channel, we create content people genuinely want in their feeds. Irish humour, cultural moments, food discovery, GAA, employee-generated content and reactive trends help build a distinctive Centra personality while naturally showcasing our products and priorities.
Our approach is platform-first: TikTok leads on trends, entertainment and food discovery; Instagram combines culture, lifestyle, sport and interactive content; while Facebook focuses more on value, My Centra, community and convenience.
Across all platforms, we prioritise short-form video, strong hooks, real people and content that entertains or adds value, balancing forward planning with the agility to react quickly to cultural moments.
Ultimately, we want Centra to feel like a participant in modern Irish life, not a retailer speaking from the sidelines.
What Were The Outcomes For This Campaign Metrics Next Question
The strategy has transformed Centra’s social presence into one that is distinctive, culturally relevant and built for the way people consume content today.
Centra has developed a recognisable social personality, using Irish humour, trends, real employees and everyday moments to become an active participant in conversations rather than simply broadcasting retail messages.
It has also strengthened our connection with younger audiences, particularly through TikTok and Instagram, where our content increasingly behaves like creator content rather than traditional brand advertising. This has allowed us to make products, offers and key business priorities part of the entertainment rather than an interruption to it.
The strategy has created a more agile way of working internally too. Forward planning is balanced with the ability to react quickly to cultural moments, trends and conversations, giving the team the freedom to move at the speed of social while remaining consistent with Centra’s Live Every Day positioning.
Importantly, social has become a stronger tool for the wider business – supporting major sponsorships, My Centra App launch, product launches, offers, food discovery and community initiatives while continuing to build brand love.
Overall, Centra now has a social presence that feels more human, more entertaining and more connected to modern Irish life.
What Are Your Metrics For This Campaign Real Metrics Please
The success of Centra’s social strategy is measured across reach, engagement, video views, audience growth and business impact, alongside competitor benchmarking.
Results demonstrate sustained growth across our key platforms:
• Meta organic engagements increased 63.5% YoY, from 203,156 to 332,158 between January–July.
• TikTok engagements increased 7.4% YoY, from 466,894 to 501,340.
• TikTok reach increased 20.4% YoY, from 2.47M to 2.98M.
• Centra typically delivers 20,000–30,000 engagements and 2.5–3M reach weekly.
• Centra added approximately 17,000 TikTok followers in 2026, with almost two-thirds of our audience aged 18–34.
• Internal benchmarking consistently positions Centra as the top grocery retailer for TikTok engagements.
The Traitors Ireland 2025 campaign delivered 16M+ video views, 4M+ reach, 58,000 engagements and a 40% uplift in volume on featured products.
Social also played a key role in launching My Centra, helping surpass registration and active-user targets significantly ahead of expectations.
Is There Anything Else You Want To Add Be Brief
Centra’s social strategy has transformed how the brand shows up online – moving beyond traditional retail content to become an active participant in modern Irish culture. Most significantly, Centra now consistently ranks as the #1 grocery retailer for TikTok engagement in our internal competitor benchmarking, demonstrating that a platform-first, entertainment-led approach can deliver both brand relevance and business impact.