The preview of Alpet’s new commercial film, starring veteran actor Şener Şen and İbrahim Büyükak, was held at the Esma Sultan Mansion. Many famous figures from the business and art worlds attended the event organized as part of the “Turkey’s Alpet is Now Brand New” campaign. Among the attendees was Energy Contracts Expert, Judicial Expert, Senior Editor-Writer at Energy Newspaper, World Traveler, and Economist Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu.
Through History and My Personal Memories
With an enchanting breeze from the Bosphorus at the historic venue, inspired by the orchestra of the commercial’s artists, Çiğdem Yorgancıoğlu, who made a tiny minuet chi 360 dance bow and is a fan of Japanese teriyaki following her visit to Japan, shared her thoughts about the event:
“I love connection stories. As someone who enjoys deeply researching history and historical places, including Ottoman History, at the end of this month, while being in these places for my primary purpose, I can’t help but think about the historical backgrounds and memories that have passed through these locations. I’m in a building and venue made by Neo-Classical style architect Balyan again. Just a few days ago, I was at Feriye Palace, another Balyan creation where Abdulaziz passed away, for an Elder event. Now, I’m in the summer palace built for Esma Sultan, daughter of Sultan Abdulaziz, the 32nd Ottoman Sultan. This place holds many memories for me. I’ve attended many events here, and the most memorable was the fado concert by Portuguese artist Mariza. The ambiance is perfect: the waves of the Bosphorus, sea foam, sunny weather, the sea bass teriyaki, and the treats are wonderful. The master actor Şener Şen, the last movie we watched was ‘Yol Ayrımı’. This commercial film also takes place on the roads. I’ll explain the contextual connections in this film and the commercial another day; it’s not our topic right now, so I won’t extend this.
Before talking about the commercial and the event, let me also mention: regulations are constantly changing, and in the meantime, the fuel sector has become a sector where profit margins are decreasing, including mainstream news and dialogue impressions I have during the events I attend. Therefore, it is necessary to continuously find innovative and sustainable areas and move forward from there.”
Let me briefly summarize the event and its main objective
As far as I can follow from what I have watched and the patterns in their narratives, there is a group committed to growing together with their business partners: Zeren Holding. This subsidiary of Zeren Group Holding, Alpet, a leading brand in the fuel distribution sector that has been operating since 2001, made a strong start to the new period with the sales meeting it held just a few days ago at Istanbul Hilton Kozyatağı Hotel. The new General Manager Batmaz also took office very recently, in May. Now, reflecting the transformation that began after joining “Zeren Group Holding,” they announced the preview of their new commercial with the slogan “We Are Starting Again” at a press conference in Istanbul. This inclusion in the Zeren Group, as we know, involves Alpet’s transfer from Altınbaş to Zeren Holding, which concluded last year following the Competition Board processes. According to official statements, Alpet, which already has the highest fuel storage capacity among distribution companies in Turkey, has 262 stations and 5 filling facilities across Turkey, and nearly 60 stations under the ALPET brand in Albania.
Famous actors Şener Şen and İbrahim Büyükak, who are the faces of the commercial, attended the meeting. In the new commercial, Şener Şen and İbrahim Büyükak played the roles of a father-in-law and son-in-law. The commercial was shown twice at the beginning and three times at the end. The opening speeches of the meeting were made by Zeren Group Honorary President Rıdvan Zeren, Zeren Group Board Member Seda Zeren, and Zeren Group Board Member Yusuf Yatkın, alongside Şener Şen and İbrahim Büyükak.
The commercial, shot in Antalya, Fethiye, and Istanbul, portrays İbrahim Büyükak, the son-in-law candidate, introducing Alpet, where he works—one of the company’s key competitive advantages being its filling facilities—to his father-in-law, Şener Şen. The production of the launch commercials and the creative campaign design belong to 25 Film. The launch commercials were directed by Ali Taner Baltacı. With the motto “We Have Dreams” and the hashtag #TurkiyeninAlpetiSimdiYepyeni, the Alpet brand, aiming to increase its number of stations, planned the release of the first new commercial for May 31. Preparations for the subsequent commercials to be released in the future have already begun.
A Few Words About the Commercial Film, What Initially Caught My Eye
In the promotional film, the son-in-law candidate’s desire to be accepted by the father-in-law, his gesture of attempting to kiss the father-in-law’s hand, the father-in-law’s effort to show magnanimity and controlled fatherly love by preventing it, the scenes with cracking sunflower seeds, tea in a thin-waisted cup, backgammon, sheep, asking for the girl’s hand, and the father’s struggle to accept the son-in-law reflect motifs, images, and traditions unique to Turkey and Anatolia with its east and west. It seems to remind that the old and the authentic are not forgotten in the discourse about the new.
The sweet joke of “Let’s see if it fits the shop.”
In Şener Şen’s line in the commercial, in the scene where he speaks, one can see the wise speech and eloquence style, especially in his films, perhaps in the last 20 years. There is even a scene in the movie Eşkıya, where Baran says to Cumali just before he dies: “Don’t be afraid! You will only go to the earth. Then you will become soil. Then you will walk into the body of a flower with the waters. From there, you will reach your essence. A bee will land on the essence of the flower. Maybe, maybe I will be that bee.” This scene from Şener Şen came to my mind for a moment. Meanwhile, in the later seconds of the commercial, we understand that the son-in-law’s initial anxiety about acceptance has eased a bit, as in one scene on the road, his tie is loosened, and his shirt collar is relaxed.
Meanwhile, the “Always” concept presented in the commercial, as far as I know, means the expansion of non-fuel services and the station network. There seemed to be a coffee advertisement with the sign Columbia Coffee when the duo arrived at the station. I don’t know the concept there. It might be entirely coincidental, possibly related to product placement or hidden advertising, or not at all. Since if it were a coffee sponsor, it might have been a topic at the event. Or not. Anyway, it’s not my area of expertise. It just caught my eye while watching.
While watching, I thought of the Salamis station in TRNC, where Alpet’s energy needs were met by solar panels. I wondered if there were any of these in stations in Anatolia as well. As we know, Zolaris Energy is part of Zeren Holding. It is known as a dynamic company focused on European energy trading, specializing in renewable energy, and expanding its operations to significant Eastern European markets. During the talks with the Competition Board, it was emphasized that Alpet would make strides in sustainability on the renewable side as well. Therefore, many solar energy and sustainability projects are likely to come to the forefront. We will probably see many solar-powered stations.
Şener Şen: “Roads, Cars, and Gas Stations Are Part of My Life. There Was the Excitement of Doing a Successful Job.”
Actor Şener Şen, who stated that he had participated in various campaigns due to his work but had not worked in commercials, said: “I am very selective in projects, and this selectivity applies to commercials as well. I was particularly interested in Zeren Group’s offer because it related to my field. Roads, cars, etc., interest me. Their approach with excitement to do something very good and successful, from all their top executives, affected me. Everyone on set, from the advertising agency, the creative department, to the director, united to do a successful job. It’s a subject that concerns all of us; there is no one who doesn’t go on long journeys. I am happy to be in a harmonious collaboration with such a team. We all worked with the excitement of doing a successful job,” he said.
İbrahim Büyükak: “Every Moment with Şener Abi Is Like a School and a Lesson”
The first to take the stage was the son-in-law candidate Büyükak. Introducing “our master and brother” Şener Şen first, he then invited the other speakers to the stage and took his place among them. İbrahim Büyükak, who played the son-in-law in the commercial, said, “Playing with the master actor Şener Abi is a great pleasure; I am very happy in that regard as well. I am very happy with the result of the work. I hope the viewers will like it and it will achieve its purpose. It’s a beautiful day for me. It’s not easy to convince Şener Abi for a new project. Hopefully, if we write a good script and make Şener Abi like it, it will be a great success for us. Every moment during the shoot was an amazing memory for me. It was a very special set that I can tell my children and even my grandchildren if I get to see them. Every moment with Şener Abi is like a school and a lesson. I am very happy,” he said.
Emphasis on Increasing Female Employment
Esma Sultan Mansion, a summer venue built specifically for women, highlighted the theme of women at the event. In fact, this development, aimed at increasing the participation of women in economic and social life, has been ongoing for years in other companies, focusing on increasing women’s power in fuel stations and even dealerships. Particularly in 2024, there have been other developments. We are aware of the projects and developments with OPET and İŞKUR. In this sense, we can say that Zeren Holding aims not to lag behind with Alpet in the steps taken. This is a good development. Of course, while strengthening female employment here, I am saying this assuming that efforts are also being made to overcome all kinds of difficulties women encounter or might encounter in business life (and reflecting on their family life).
The female speaker of the event, Zeren Group Board Member Seda Zeren, pointed to a social responsibility project for young people that will be announced very soon.
Zeren Group Honorary President Rıdvan Zeren, noting that they have been serving for half a century, said: “Our service continues in 8 sectors in 6 countries. The increase in our fleet and number of employees required us to focus on more sectors. We operate in many different sectors. We want to leave a lasting legacy for our country.”
Zeren Group Board Member Yusuf Yatkın emphasized their goal of positioning Alpet where it deserves: “What will we do? We will increase female employment. We will move the stations, which are more concentrated in Anatolia, to central locations in major cities. In short, we will work day and night to bring Alpet to where it deserves to be. We still have the goal of setting up electric charging stations. In the future, we will do our best to ensure that all Alpet stations have electric charging stations,” he said.
