Dive Brief:

• Unilever-owned food brand Knorr is embracing dupe culture with a social-first ad campaign and partnership with celebrity chef Martha Stewart, per details shared with Marketing Dive.
• The campaign supports Knorr’s “Unlimited Time Menu,” which showcases how the brand’s products can be used to recreate popular limited-time menu items from fast food chains like McDonald’s. Stewart features in a 30-second spot where she uses Knorr products to dupe a sandwich similar to the McRib alongside a group of “unlimited Marthas.”
• Knorr for the first time is also utilizing branded ads on Lyft and shoppable recipe videos with a QR code on Roku that will lead to Walmart’s recipe page. Other elements include influencer and social content, digital out-of-home (OOH) ads and a partnership with chef and content creator Joshua Weissman and fast food influencer How Kev Eats.

Dive Insight:

Knorr is empowering fast food fans to recreate their favorite limited-time offerings at home with the help of its pre-packaged products. “Unlimited Time Menu” shows off four fast food dupes and explains how consumers can make their favorites at home, with menu items inclusive of the K-Rib sandwich, a reference to the McRib; the Knorr Double Up, a reference to the KFC Double Down; the Mac ‘n Chicken Bowl; and the Knorr-ito.

The accompanying campaign calls on brand partner Stewart, who stars in a 30-second spot where she introduces “one of those fast food rib sandwiches” that you can only get for a limited time — a clear nod to the McRib. However, the star reveals that while the sandwich looks like the McRib, it’s a dupe that she created using Knorr products. Stewart then asserts that you can dupe “almost anything” before calling on her army of “unlimited Marthas,” a group of women who look similar to the iconic home chef.

Often associated with fashion and beauty brands, “dupe culture” is when consumers look for lower cost or more convenient alternatives to recreate more expensive looks and products. Gen Z consumers in particular have shown interest in the trend, especially amid rising economic uncertainty. As fast food becomes more expensive and brands continue to embrace limited-time offerings to generate hype, consumers may be tempted to recreate meals at home.

Additional campaign elements include branded ads on Lyft meant to intercept users when they select their destination as a fast food restaurant and shoppable recipe videos built with a QR code on Roku that will direct consumers to a recipe page through Walmart. Other assets will span social media platforms including X, TikTok and Instagram, with influencer content on the latter two platforms. Digital out-of-home ads will appear in cities including Chicago and Boston to target fast food consumers.

Creative is largely focused on how similar Knorr’s dupes taste to the original product. The YouTube collaborations with Weissman, who boasts over 10 million YouTube subscribers, and Noparvar, who has over 670,000 Instagram followers, are intended to lend credibility to the taste aspect of the recipes.

Limited-time offerings play a key role in the marketing for many fast food chains. For example, McDonald’s USA held a “farewell tour” for the McRib in 2022 (despite numerous reappearances since then) and KFC heavily promoted the return of the Double Down in 2023 and 2025. However, when these items appear is largely unpredictable.

Knorr has turned to social and digital media to reach consumers. In the lead up to Thanksgiving, the brand launched its “#EffortisEverything” campaign, which encouraged consumers to take culinary risks during the holiday season, even if outcomes were less than stellar. In February, the brand attempted to make cooking more approachable for consumers looking to woo a partner during Valentine’s Day.