Client: Okayama Kobo

Niche: Japanese Artisan Bakery
Platform: Instagram & TikTok

Challenge

Okayama Kobo Bakery wanted to expand its brand presence across Hawai‘i by showcasing its Japanese-inspired baked goods through visually engaging content. The challenge was to increase brand awareness, drive more in-store visits, and create a stronger emotional connection with both locals and tourists — all while standing out in a competitive café and bakery scene.

Approach

We built a content strategy that highlighted craftsmanship, culture, and crave-worthiness:

• Reels & TikToks: Produced cinematic short-form videos capturing the artistry of each pastry — from dough kneading to slow-motion icing and fresh bread reveals.

• Consistent Posting Schedule: Maintained a cadence of 5 posts per week — mixing product showcases, morning prep moments, and behind-the-scenes stories.

• Engagement-Driven Captions: Used calls-to-action like “Tag your coffee buddy ☕🍞” and “Would you wake up early for this?” to encourage shares and saves.

• Cultural Storytelling: Highlighted Japanese baking heritage, local ingredients, and seasonal flavors (like matcha croissants and strawberry mochi bread).

• Cross-Platform Optimization: Adapted Instagram Reels for TikTok to maximize exposure with trend-based edits and trending sounds.

• Monthly Analytics Review: Measured performance by views, saves, and in-store traffic spikes after viral posts.

Results

• Top-performing reel: 1,350 likes, 295 shares, and 42 comments across both Instagram & TikTok.

• Average monthly engagement up 180% over three months.

• In-store foot traffic increased 25% following consistent posting and cross-platform growth.

• High-performing content themes: Slow-motion bread pulls, coffee-pairing videos, and staff feature stories.

• Achieved steady follower growth and a recognizable online brand voice centered on quality and warmth.

Outcome

Okayama Kobo Bakery successfully turned its handcrafted baking process into social media storytelling that resonates. Through Spark’s creative direction and content strategy, the brand transformed into one of Hawai‘i’s most-loved local bakeries online — blending culture, craft, and community into every post.