Case Study: Turning a Cultural Moment into Global Reach

The Brief

Butteries are a staple in the North East of Scotland, deeply rooted in local culture and tradition. Beyond the region, across the wider UK and internationally, they are far less well known.

Murdoch Allan is a third-generation baker based in Hatton, with six shops in the North East of Scotland. Supplying baked goods to nearly every supermarket chain in Scotland, they have asked us to help broaden the reach of their flagship Aberdeen Buttery, bringing its taste and tradition to a national and international audience.

As part of our strategic approach with clients, we are constantly monitoring social media channels to ensure we are always on top of trends and to identify opportunities as soon as they happen. That context is exactly why we moved quickly when an exciting opportunity presented itself.

While browsing Instagram’s explore feed, we came across a video from an American rapper who had recently visited Aberdeen. In the video, he was enjoying a pack of Murdoch Allan butteries on his flight back to the United States. The content was entirely organic with no brand involvement, no prompting, and no campaign behind it. It was simply a genuine moment of someone enjoying a local product.

Rather than treating this as a passive mention, we recognised it as an opportunity to extend an authentic interaction that had already resonated.

The Approach

To build a relationship, we reached out and offered to send butteries to his hometown in Maryland, USA, allowing him to share a taste of Scotland with his friends and family. Once the package had been shipped, we continued to follow up with Airospace to keep him updated on when to expect the delivery.

When the butteries arrived, he shared another video of himself tearing open the box, emptying out the packs of butteries, and eating them. That single post generated over 25,000 views on Instagram, along with close to 100 comments. Much of the conversation focused on how people eat butteries, memories of home, and genuine enthusiasm for the product.

It quickly became clear that the value was not just in the reach, but in the conversation. Regional pride, food nostalgia, and personal rituals were driving engagement far more effectively than highly polished brand content typically does.

We knew that the video would be a great piece of content for Murdoch Allan’s newly launched TikTok account, so we decided to share it. 

The Outcomes

The TikTok video reached a significantly wider audience, with over 80,000 views, more than 5,000 likes, 230 comments, over 700 shares, a total watch time of 414 hours, and gained our client 310 new followers.

By consistently monitoring engagement and replying to comments as they came through, we built a community that centred on people expressing affection for the product, debating how butteries should be eaten, and sharing their own experiences. It sparked a trans-Atlantic conversation about this North East delicacy, helping to educate and inspire people to try the buttery.

Since the video was published, Murdoch Allan have had an influx in orders across the UK, and have received enquiries for shipping to locations such as Ontario and Las Vegas.  Their orders in February 2026, after the video was published, increased by 87% compared to February 2025.

Identified through proactive media monitoring, this moment became a clear example of how real people and real situations can generate meaningful reach. In this case, the role of strategy was not to overproduce the content, but to recognise relevance, act quickly, and allow authenticity to lead.