Sunquick ties up 1,897 ‘bungkus ikat mati’ for a billboard

This Malaysia Day, Sunquick turned to an iconic part of local culture — the plastic drink bag tied off with a string, also known as bungkus ikat mati — for its “Warna-warni Malaysia” ('Colours of Malaysia') campaign. The campaign also coincides with the local launch of two new Sunquick flavours, Sarsi and Rose.

Created by Havas Malaysia, the campaign used 1,897 bungkus ikat mati packs as individual pixels to build a Peranakan-inspired motif on an out-of-home billboard.

Translating the idea into a workable billboard required several rounds of design testing, working within Sunquick’s actual colour palette, adjusting bag sizes and fitting everything to the board’s dimensions without losing the intricate details of the Peranakan motif, said Donevan Chew, chief creative officer, Havas Malaysia when A+M reached out.

The physical build took the team more than 18 hours, with each of the 1,897 packs hand-tied into place.

Don’t miss: Generali Malaysia goes big on OOH to make insurance feel 'Here. Now.'  

Due to food safety regulations, the drinks displayed on the billboard were not approved for public consumption. As a result, Havas and Sunquick set up a separate sampling booth nearby, where visitors could redeem their own ikat mati pack by following Sunquick’s social media page. Consumers were also able to sample the new Sarsi and Rose flavours alongside the brand’s existing range.

The billboard placement was also timed deliberately. Located along the route of the Keretapi Sarong event, the activation was positioned directly in the path of crowds making their way through KL Sentral.

Chew described watching people stop and engage with the board in real time as one of the most rewarding parts of the campaign, calling it proof that the idea had "come to life".

Meanwhile, Archana Sridhara, global brand director at Sunquick, said “'Sunquick warna-warni Malaysia' was about taking something unmistakably Malaysian and transforming it into a vibrant celebration of the colours, culture and togetherness that make Malaysia uniquely ours.

“I’m incredibly proud of how Havas Malaysia embraced that vision and, through bold creativity and meticulous craft, turned a simple idea into a spectacular Sunquick experience that Malaysians could see, feel and enjoy on this joyous occasion," added Sridhara. 

The billboard activation adds to a run of culturally rooted work Havas Malaysia has produced for Sunquick this year. Earlier in 2026, the pair leaned into Ramadan and Hari Raya with a campaign centred on "air tangan mak", the Malay phrase describing the warmth and sincerity associated with a mother’s cooking, weaving the brand into slice-of-life scenes of berbuka puasa and open-house visits.

Related articles: 
The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf just dropped a rap track 
MR D.I.Y. put up a billboard, and Malaysia turned it into a movement 
MR D.I.Y. turns its yellow reusable bag into billboard buzz