By Anietie Udoh
Leo Singapore has earned international recognition at the 2026 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, taking home a Gold Lion and a Bronze Lion for an innovative Vaseline campaign that cleverly transformed one of the internet’s most enduring scams into a powerful message about authenticity.
The award-winning campaign, “Vaseline and the Real Nigerian Prince,” addressed the growing problem of counterfeit Vaseline products by drawing a striking comparison between fake skincare products and the infamous “Nigerian Prince” scam emails that have circulated online for decades. Rather than leaning into the stereotype, the campaign subverted it.
The commercial opens with a Nigerian prince seated in a royal office, dressed in traditional regalia and holding a ceremonial staff. He views an email that viewers immediately recognise as the familiar scam message.
”I need your urgent help!
I am a Nigerian prince.
My account has been frozen. I need your help to transfer my millions to you…”
After reading the email, the prince pauses before saying, “Apparently I sent you that mail… I didn’t.”
He then introduces himself as Prince Chris Okagbue, explaining that while scammers have spent years using the phrase “Nigerian Prince” to deceive unsuspecting victims, he is, in fact, a real Nigerian prince.
”For years, scammers have been using the Nigerian Prince name to deceive people,” he says. “And when something fake appears often enough, even the real gets questioned.”
That observation becomes the central idea of the campaign.
Drawing a parallel with Vaseline, the prince holds up what appears to be an authentic bottle of Vaseline oil before revealing that it is counterfeit. He discards the fake product, replaces it with a genuine bottle and introduces a QR code verification system that allows consumers to confirm whether their Vaseline product is authentic.
The commercial closes with the memorable line: “Don’t let fake get under your skin. Get the real Vaseline.”
The campaign impressed the Cannes Lions jury by turning a globally recognised internet cliché into a fresh and meaningful story about trust, identity and consumer protection. Instead of simply highlighting the dangers of counterfeit products, Leo Singapore created an emotional connection by showing how repeated exposure to fakes can damage the credibility of the genuine article.
The work earned Leo Singapore both a Gold Lion and a Bronze Lion in the highly competitive Social & Creator Lions category, making it one of Singapore’s standout campaigns at Cannes Lions 2026.
Singapore emerged as Asia’s strongest performer in the category, winning two Gold Lions and one Bronze Lion—all for Vaseline campaigns. Alongside Leo Singapore’s success, Ogilvy Singapore claimed Gold for “Vaseline Originals,” a campaign that transformed viral community-created Vaseline hacks into official products while rewarding the creators behind them.
The Social & Creator Lions attracted 1,413 entries from around the world, with only 44 Lions awarded, underscoring the significance of Leo Singapore’s achievement.
For Nigerian creatives, the campaign offers an important lesson in strategic storytelling. Rather than avoiding a stereotype that has long shaped global perceptions of Nigeria, Leo Singapore reframed it to tell a story about authenticity, trust and innovation. In doing so, the agency not only elevated the Vaseline brand but also demonstrated how culturally familiar narratives can be reimagined to solve real business challenges and create award-winning creative work.
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