Domestos. The right to toilets
Were you aware that children from more than a quarter of Romanian schools are utilizing outdated toilets located in the backyard of their educational facilities? The campaign aimed to emphasize the importance of proper hygiene in ensuring the health of children. It was inspired by the brand’s mission to provide access to adequate toilets for 25 million people.
Build access to clean toilets in schools
Domestos serves as the primary advocate for hygiene in Romanian schools. However, in some instances, particularly in rural areas, there are no toilets to clean due to the lack of running water. This is why Domestos aimed to empower parents, teachers, institutions, and companies to facilitate the establishment of clean toilet facilities for children in schools.
Building a 360° Campaign:
From Brief to Purpose-Driven Movement
Every successful 360° campaign starts with a solid and comprehensive brief. In this case, the client came to the agency with a fairly straightforward request: to launch a national campaign announcing the donation of Domestos bottles to Romanian schools, aimed at helping them clean and maintain their toilet facilities.
But instead of jumping straight into execution, we paused and asked ourselves an essential, honest question: “Which toilets?”
In 2019, the situation in Romania was alarming — over a quarter of schools were still using outdated outdoor toilets, often little more than unsanitary pits. This wasn’t merely a matter of hygiene, but one of dignity. That moment was our turning point. Rather than following the original brief to simply announce a product donation, we reframed the campaign’s purpose. Our proposal? Empower school ambassadors — whether teachers, parents, or concerned citizens — to apply for EU funding that could help their communities build real, functional sanitation facilities.
This insight — the lack of access to proper toilets in Romanian schools — became our campaign’s cornerstone. From there, everything unfolded naturally.
VISUAL IDENTITY: A BOLD, HUMAN-CENTRIC SYMBOL
The campaign’s key visual was inspired by the aesthetics and spirit of human rights movements. We chose the symbol of a raised fist — a universal sign of empowerment and protest — but added a powerful twist: the hand of a child holding a toilet brush. Unusual, even provocative, this image captured both the gravity and urgency of the issue, paired with an emotional, humanistic layer.
TELLING THE STORY: THE MANIFESTO VIDEO
Once we had the key visual, the campaign manifesto followed. The video was designed to show real insights from the everyday lives of children in communities lacking access to basic hygiene.
In their own words, kids described the harsh conditions: “I try not to touch anything — it’s too dirty.”, “We don’t have water to wash our hands.”, “It’s so cold inside, I’d rather wait until I get home.” or “Sometimes it’s better to go behind the toilet.”
Taking Action: The Campaign Website
By sharing the story from a child’s perspective and emphasizing the unacceptability of the situation, we generated emotional urgency around the issue. We didn’t just raise awareness — we created tangible ways for people to get involved, offering school sign-ups and guidance on EU funding applications. This empowered individuals to move from passive observers to active participants in the solution, sparking a transformative shift.
The website was central to this effort. It served as a hub for learning about the initiative and taking action. Through the site domestos.com./ro/dreptul-la-toalete.ro (the right to toilets), users could donate to the campaign or, if they were parents, teachers, or local community members, apply for support from EU experts who could assist in securing funding to help build proper toilet facilities in their local schools.”
Results that matter
This campaign wasn’t just about donating cleaning products. It was about shifting the conversation — from charity to systemic change, from temporary fixes to long-term impact, and from marketing to empowerment.
The initiative significantly raised awareness about hygiene issues in Romanian schools and mobilized entire communities to ensure decent toilet facilities. Through the joint efforts of Domestos, the Romanian Red Cross, and local communities, meaningful progress has been made in eliminating unsanitary toilets from educational institutions.
Over 70,000 students benefited from improved hygiene conditions in schools and kindergartens.
More than €180,000 were donated for building and renovating toilet facilities, as well as for providing cleaning products. Between September 2019 and April 2020, 345 schools registered for the campaign. Of these: 25% requested the construction of indoor toilets to replace outdoor ones, 25% applied for renovation of existing toilets and 50% applied for hygiene product kits. A total of 4 sanitary units were renovated and another 4 were built from scratch. 200 educational institutions received cleaning and disinfection products.