Three-time world all-around champion Simone Biles sits in her gym reading a box of letters that has just been given to her.
“Simone, when you think about the things that you've accomplished, just know that it's just the beginning,” wrote her dad, Ron.
In an Olympic campaign from Hershey’s that launches Monday, Biles receives a box of “Hellos from Home.” In the commercial, Biles unwraps messages that are enclosed in Hershey bar packaging.
“Just wanted to wish my babe good luck on your way to Rio. I'm so proud of you already, and I can't wait for you to kick some butt. Can't wait until you get home so we can travel the world together. Miss you like crazy, and I love you so much,” wrote one of Biles’ best friends, Rachel Moore.
Poised to make her first Olympic team as the USA’s top female gymnast, Biles was an “amazing fit” for the campaign, said Stacie Stauffer, senior brand manager for Hershey’s. The company looked for athletes who had a close connection to a network of family and friends that drives them, Stauffer said.
Biles, who is a lock to make the team for Rio after winning her fourth consecutive national title on Sunday night in St. Louis, was attractive to the brand as a potential first-time Olympian because of the “elation and the exuberance that comes with that,” Stauffer added.
Fans will get a chance to submit their own handwritten notes to Biles and other U.S. athletes at the Olympic team trials for women’s gymnastics in San Jose beginning July 8. Hershey’s will also collect messages through social media.
“Our goal is to generate thousands and thousands of hellos and deliver them via the iconic bars and lots of different physical and digital ways,” Stauffer said, adding that the company will deliver bars to members of Team USA in Rio de Janeiro on National S'mores Day on Aug. 10. The Summer Olympics begin Aug. 5.
“We really saw an opportunity to inspire consumers to seize the moment and now send messages to Team USA,” she added. “Really connecting us all during a really important time during the Olympic Games.”
The company signed a five-year deal with the U.S. Olympic Committee in October. Olympic wrestler Jordan Burroughs, who won gold in London, and Paralympic champion swimmer Mallory Weggemann are also part of the campaign.
