Hankook Sends Its Retired Mechanic 'Hank' Into the Wild for Season Two, via Innocean Berlin
Hankook and Innocean Berlin launched 'Hank: Retired in the Wild' on 18 September 2026 — season two of the brand's tyre platform, a run of six films in which a retired-mechanic character explains tyre technology through deadpan outdoor comedy, treating a recurring character as a long-term brand asset.
A retired mechanic goes back to nature
Tyre marketing rarely troubles the culture. Hankook is trying to change that with a returning character: Hank, a retired mechanic played by actor Jeff Ricketts, who explains tyre technology through deadpan outdoor demonstrations. "Hank: Retired in the Wild" is the second season of the brand's "Live your life. Leave tyres to us" platform, created by Innocean Berlin and launched on 18 September 2026.
The conceit is simple and sticky: take the fine print of a tyre test report and turn it into entertainment. Hank demonstrates aquaplaning on a garden water slide (in swimwear), inspects tread with binoculars, explores off-road rubber in a forest and even performs an acoustic song.
Six films, one castle, a lot of restraint
The season comprises six films shot at Stift Ehreshoven, a moated castle estate in the Bergisches Land. Anchoring a technical category in a warm, absurd character is a deliberate bet that likeability will do what spec sheets cannot: make people remember a tyre brand.
That Hankook has renewed the platform roughly a year after launch is the real signal. Consistency is the rarest discipline in advertising; most brands abandon a device just as audiences start to recognise it.
Why recurring characters are a growth asset
A distinctive, ownable character is one of the most efficient brand assets there is. It compounds recognition across every execution, travels across channels, and gives a low-interest category a reason to be watched rather than skipped. Hank is Hankook's version of the mascots and spokes-characters that anchor far bigger ad budgets.
Marketing Minute's read: the discipline here is patience. Season two is where character marketing starts to pay off — the audience arrives already knowing who Hank is, so the brand spends less to earn the same attention.
What businesses should take from it
If you sell something technical or low-interest, stop leading with the spec sheet. Find the human — or the character — who can make the benefit feel like a story, and commit to them for the long haul rather than reinventing your creative every quarter.
And treat your best creative device like an asset on the balance sheet. The value of a Hank — or a meerkat, or a gecko — is that it grows every time you use it. Killing it to "refresh" resets the compounding to zero.
Quick FAQ
What is Hankook's 'Hank' campaign?
"Hank: Retired in the Wild" is season two of Hankook's "Live your life. Leave tyres to us" platform, created by Innocean Berlin. It uses a retired-mechanic character, played by Jeff Ricketts, to explain tyre technology through comic outdoor scenes.
When did the Hankook season two campaign launch?
It launched on 18 September 2026, roughly a year after the platform's debut, with six films shot at the Stift Ehreshoven castle estate in the Bergisches Land region.
Why use a recurring character in tyre advertising?
A distinctive character compounds recognition across executions and makes a low-interest category watchable, delivering more attention for less spend as audiences come to know it.
Most brands treat their best creative idea like a rental — used once, then discarded for something 'fresh.' Hankook is treating Hank like an asset, and season two is where that pays off: the audience already knows him, so every euro of media works harder. Consistency is an underrated growth strategy. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
A recurring character is an appreciating asset — the brands that win resist the urge to 'refresh' it just as recognition starts to compound.
Do you have a brand asset you've abandoned too early — and what would season two look like?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: Campaign Germany.
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Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
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