At the eighth edition of the Effie Awards Serbia ceremony, held at the Radisson Collection Hotel in Belgrade, the prestigious Effie Grand Prix was awarded for the first time in Serbia. The highest recognition of the evening went to the campaign Mrvica strpljenja (A Crumb of Patience) by Bambi, created in collaboration with agencies McCann Belgrade and Communis, in cooperation with partner agencies UM Belgrade and AdVenture Skopje.
In addition, McCann Belgrade won two Gold Effie Awards for the same campaign in the categories Timely Opportunity and Commerce & Shopper: Crisis Response / Critical Pivot.
The A Crumb of Patience campaign touched all of our hearts because it was launched after the Plazma factory, which has been synonymous with biscuits for decades, was severely damaged in a fire. When something we perceive as a part of ourselves disappears, we realize how deeply emotionally valuable it is in our lives. It is important that someone supports us and restores our hope. The idea behind the campaign was to inspire consumers and convey the importance of patience in life, even in the most challenging moments. The message was carefully crafted to acknowledge the seriousness of the situation while maintaining a calming tone, emphasizing that Plazma would return soon.
The results of the campaign were extremely positive. Consumers showed solidarity and support through social media, and thanks to that, despite the shortage, Bambi maintained its market leadership and achieved record sales of other Plazma products.
“A Crumb of Patience” entered history – just as it became a symbol of Plazma, a moment connecting the past and the future, it also became a symbol of communication, emotion, and the relationship between a brand and its consumers. This year was extremely challenging, but above all, emotional for all of us. It taught us that the strength of unity is priceless, that empathy gives birth to solidarity, and solidarity to collective strength. Both personally and professionally, we felt the need to be honest and authentic. We wanted to understand how our consumers were feeling. In times of crisis, every person goes through different emotional stages before adapting to change — from confusion, dissatisfaction, and sadness to hope, acceptance, and a new reality. In each of these stages, we understood what their emotions meant because we were part of them too.
A Crumb of Patience was our truth, our final ‘stop’ to the myth that vulnerability is weakness. We showed that it is our ‘most accurate measure of courage’,” said Strahinja Inić, Group Brand Manager for Plazma.
In front of over 300 guests from the marketing and business communities, a total of 12 Effie trophies were awarded: one Grand Prix, three golds, four silvers, and four bronzes. The jury evaluated 17 finalists across 10 competition categories, with nearly 60 jury members participating in a two-round judging process. The final decision was made by the Scoring Committee and confirmed by the Effie Worldwide office.
Grand Prix: A Triumph of Creativity and Effectiveness
Category: Timely Opportunity
Campaign: Mrvica strpljenja
Brand: Bambi
Agencies: Communis, McCann Belgrade
Gold Effie Winners
The Most Important Call of Your Life 2024 – Hemofarm Foundation
(Category: Non-Profit; Agencies: Jazavac and Utorak)
Plazma: A Crumb of Patience – Bambi
(Category: Commerce & Shopper: Crisis Response / Critical Pivot; Agencies: McCann Belgrade, Communis)
Mrvica strpljenja – Bambi
(Category: Timely Opportunity; Agencies: Communis, McCann Belgrade)
Silver Effie Winners
The Network of the Most Important Influencers – A1 Serbia
(Categories: Internet & Telecom and Positive Change – Social Good; Agency: Leo Burnett Belgrade)
Swear on the Law – Autonomous Women’s Center
(Category: Positive Change – Social Good; Agency: McCann Belgrade)
Guarana Azijana – Knjaz Miloš
(Category: Youth Marketing; Agency: Fullhouse Ogilvy)
Bronze Effie Winners
FIKS Refinance Loan – Yettel Bank
(Category: Finance; Agencies: New Moment New Ideas Company, Media House)
KING Escape the Ordinary – Frikom
(Category: Food; Agency: Leo Burnett Belgrade)
Swear on the Law – Autonomous Women’s Center
(Category: Small Budgets – Non-Profit; Agency: McCann Belgrade)
Questions Only Women Hear – Essity Croatia
(Category: Small Budgets – Non-Profit; Agency: Ovation Belgrade)
Top Performing Agencies and Brands
McCann Belgrade and Communis demonstrated absolute dominance, particularly through their multi-award-winning collaboration with Bambi.
For the campaign “Swear on the Law” by the Autonomous Women’s Center, McCann Belgrade received a Silver Effie in the category Positive Change – Social Good: Brands, Non-profit, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and a Bronze Effie in the category Small Budgets – Non-Profit, Products & Services. Partner agencies were UM Belgrade and Two Rivers.
Swear on the Law is a powerful and socially relevant campaign that broke the silence around revenge porn in a country where taking an oath still holds significant weight and is considered a deep expression of trust. The campaign raised awareness and mobilized over 20,000 people who signed a petition, resulting in the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Serbia supporting the initiative to criminalize revenge pornography. In doing so, it paved the way for systemic protection of victims.
“We hope that the awards will help keep the issue of unauthorized sharing of intimate recordings in the public eye, because women and girls are still waiting for justice. We thank McCann Belgrade, Two Rivers, and everyone who joined our volunteer-driven campaign for their support. And thank you to the Effie jury for recognizing that it is possible to make change with limited resources and a lot of activism,” said Vanja Macanović from the Autonomous Women’s Center.
The brand Bambi, with two Golds and a Grand Prix, and A1 Serbia, with two Silver awards, stood out as the leaders of effective communication in 2025.About Effie Awards in Serbia.
Effie Awards Serbia is organized by the IAA Serbian Chapter with the support of major market players, from leading brands to agencies and media houses. Effie is the global standard for marketing effectiveness, present in over 50 countries, and has been awarded in Serbia since 2018.
This year’s award ceremony was supported by partners including A1, Banca Intesa, Carlsberg Serbia, Coca-Cola, Heineken, McDonald’s, Mastercard, UniCredit Bank, Garnier, Henkel, Red Bull, as well as top agencies like Direct Media, EssenceMediacom, Publicis Groupe, Fullhouse Ogilvy, McCann, OvationBBDO, Havas, and many more.
