Basant is coming back to Lahore. After years.
And I'm watching Pakistani brands miss the easiest win of 2026.
I just got off a call with a handbag brand manager and made them realize—nobody's thinking about this yet.
Not properly.
Everyone's going to wake up February 2nd and throw up a "Happy Basant" post with a product shot and call it marketing.
But I told her: this isn't a post. This is a purchase timeline.
People Are Already Thinking About Basant
News drops every few days. The conversation is building.
So why are you planning to show up last minute?
I told her to start now. Make it a narrative.
"I ordered my bag for Basant day."
That's the hook. Film it. Phone recording. Checkout screen. Bag gets delivered. Then what happens? You go to the parlor. You're getting ready. Basant is coming. The bag is with you. It's part of the prep.
Front to back. The full journey.
Don't Make the Product the Hero
You know those old Coke ads during Basant? The ones where Coke wasn't screaming at you, it was just... there? In the scene. Kites. Rooftops. Friends. Coke sitting on the ledge.
That's the play.
Balanced narrative framing. No single thing dominates. Not the kites. Not the people. Not the bag.
Everything together.
Most brands' content right now is all catalog. Products on products. That's not marketing. That's literally a catalog.
And I kept telling her while she's at it, don't go like "bag bag bag."
Sell the moment.
It's About Relatability, Not the Product
Because her audience is middle-class buyers. Real people. Real purchasing power.
And when they see this on screen or on their rooftop, their friends, their Basant, it's going to get attention and a lot of traction.
Not because of the product.
Because it's relatable.
I also told her: don't just post. Engage.
"This bag or that bag for Basant?"
Show preferences. Ask questions. Basant day. Basant night. Dinners. Gatherings.
Create two-way conversation.
The Timing Advantage
While I was blabbering and thinking out loud on the call, I kept thinking: I don't even know if big brands have thought about this yet.
Maybe they have. Maybe they haven't.
But this is about timing.
Brands won't be competing on creativity. They'll be competing on being early.
On Eid everyone shows up.
Basant is still open.
So I told her: treat this like a campaign. Not a moment.
Map it out. You have social. Ads. Influencers. UGC. AI tools.
What goes where. When. How does the whole machine move.
And record everything.
Build the Case Study in Real Time
Every brief. Every result. Every reaction.
Because in two weeks, this becomes a case study.
I told her to check her analytics right now. Before the campaign. Then during. Then after.
We're not sharing exact numbers. Just percentage lift.
Because the brand owner needs to see: okay, this is what we needed.
The brand owners might realize: these aren't just marketers posting stuff. These are people who think.
Nobody's Doing Subtle Product Placement Properly
Halfway through the call I told her, nobody is doing subtle product placement properly.
Google those Basant Coke ads. See how the placement worked.
Then look at what brands are posting now. It's either full product focus or nothing.
The middle ground is where it works.
Gen Z's First Basant
And the other thing—for Gen Z, this is a first-time experience.
They weren't around last time Basant happened.
So this is new. This is their moment.
Bag + experience. That's the sell.
Not the bag.
The version of themselves holding that bag at a rooftop Basant party.
That's what they're buying.
So What Are You Doing?
I'm sitting here thinking: if you're in Pakistan and you sell anything lifestyle-adjacent, you're sitting on this right now.
Today is January 15th. Basant is early February.
You still have time.
But not much.
What are you doing?