Chapter 25: Real Ketchup

**Chapter 25: Real Ketchup**

On their way home, Ethan and Jimmy were stopped by the police.

"Stop!" The officer in a blue uniform and bulletproof vest waved his hand, signaling Jimmy to roll down the window, then lowered his head to scrutinize the two men with a serious look.

"Listen, keep your hands where I can see them! Then show me your driver's license!" The officer had his gun holstered at his side, seemingly on a search mission.

It also looked like they might be tested for drunk driving. Jimmy had had a little drink at the office, not much, but it was likely he'd fail the test.

So Ethan took out his wallet from his coat pocket and handed it to the officer. "Hey, Officer, we live just a few blocks away. What's going on?"

"Stop! Put it down!"

The officer, with his gun still drawn and alert, accepted the wallet with his left hand. When he saw the police department membership card inside, he relaxed his stance.

Returning the wallet to Ethan, he put his gun back in its holster and said, "There was a shooting earlier. A few Black gangs were fighting."

"Damn it, those people never learn to settle down!" Jimmy complained.

"Exactly," the officer nodded. "If you have any clues, let us know."

"Don't worry, we definitely will. Thanks for your hard work, Officer. Stay safe," Ethan replied with a smile.

"Naturally... Alright, go ahead. Take a detour to the right on your way back." The officer didn't test for drunk driving and even let Jimmy and Ethan pass, finally relaxing once they drove away.

"Damn, that was really scary, those sons of bitches..." Jimmy cursed under his breath, taking the detour the officer had indicated.

"Let's head home. This place is really not safe," Ethan remarked.

He was already planning to leave this neighborhood once he earned enough money, at least to move to a predominantly white area in New York where security was better and it was more upscale. That way, he wouldn't have to worry about his mother and two younger brothers' safety.

Back at home, Ethan sketched and looked through recent newspapers.

Heinz Ketchup was advertising all over the U.S., including TV, newspapers, and billboards. However, competition in the food industry was fierce. Just flipping through a week's worth of newspapers, Ethan saw advertisements from four or five different companies for ketchup.

Their slogans were similar, mostly focusing on flavors, with claims that their ketchup paired better with fried chicken or was a better companion for bread.

Some even boldly claimed their ketchup was better than Heinz's. They were pulling out all the stops to capture the ketchup market.

But Ethan noticed some clues from their product names, like Darling Tomato Sauce and Weime Tomato Sauce.

These names seemed to add "seasoned" compared to Heinz Ketchup. Ethan walked to the kitchen and found they indeed had Weime Tomato Sauce at home. Its bottle appeared larger; although its color wasn't as rich as Heinz's, it seemed to offer better value.

"What are you looking at?" Carmella came downstairs, walked to the fridge, and took out cucumber slices, apparently intending to make a face mask.

"Carmella, why don't we use Heinz?" Ethan asked, holding up the bottle.

"Heinz?" Carmella frowned. "Heinz is more expensive, and the taste is similar, so of course, we buy the cheaper one."

"Is the taste really similar?"

Carmella thought for a moment. "Not exactly. Heinz has a richer taste. Often, a small spoonful is enough, while with this one, I have to pour a lot because it's lighter."

"Then let's switch to Heinz from now on." Ethan put the seasoned tomato sauce back in the cabinet.

"Yeah, I do miss the taste of Heinz a bit." With more money at home, Carmella's mood had been great, and she was starting to take better care of herself.

After their conversation, Ethan had further ideas for the Heinz ad. He sketched a huge billboard on his notebook, showing a bottle of Heinz ketchup tilted at a 45-degree angle, with rich ketchup flowing slowly from the bottle's mouth.

This was the preliminary concept, inspired by a classic whiskey ad, where the spilled liquor was realistically poured into an oil tank truck beneath the billboard.

But Heinz Ketchup obviously couldn't be portrayed this way, and their selling points were entirely different.

So Ethan wrote a few lines of text in the empty space on the left side of the billboard. These lines were the essence of the entire ad.

"Heinz, the only ketchup."

Ethan looked at the sketch of the billboard and nodded, feeling it was right.

Compared to all the other tomato sauces on the market, only Heinz was truly ketchup—rich and genuine, which was its core competitive edge.

Focusing on this point and differentiating it from other brands was a very wise advertising strategy.

Moreover, this was something Heinz Ketchup had always emphasized. Their company had always focused on their bottle packaging and brand name for decades. From what Ethan knew, their advertising had revolved around this, so this slogan was bound to be approved by them.

However, the next day when he arrived at Lion Advertising to present his idea to Apollion, he faced Maroni's rejection.

Maroni was wearing a green suit today, looking even more flamboyant with his yellow hair. He stood in front of the drawing board, showcasing his creative idea.

"Look, this is a steak first..." Behind him were three drawing boards, each displaying different food images: steak, burger, and fries from left to right.

After introducing the three types of food, Maroni smiled at everyone. "Don't you feel like something's missing?"

"Yes, it seems like a half-finished product," Apollion said, not quite understanding.

Hearing this, Maroni immediately flipped over the plastic covers behind the three drawing boards.

Suddenly, a line of text appeared before everyone's eyes.

"Pass the Heinz." He shrugged dramatically. "What's most important in an ad? Imagination, the audience's imagination. That's the most effective promotion."

Maroni explained, "And here, Heinz represents not just ketchup, but also salad dressings, peanut butter—everything included."

"Sounds pretty good," Apollion said with a smile. "I'm already thinking about which Heinz sauce to use for tonight's burger."

"Right? That's the essence of this ad."

Maroni looked at Ethan. "And Ethan, to be honest, with my years of experience, your ad idea seems a bit limited. It might not align with the client's creative expectations."