The Christmas ad season got fully underway today with three of the UK’s largest retailers unveiling their campaigns in what many hope will be a bumper period for sales after last year’s celebrations were curtailed by a Covid lockdown.
The much-vaunted John Lewis advert returns to a tried-and-tested formula of unusual friends sharing Christmas for this year’s festive ad, with an alien stepping in where a dragon, penguin and monster under the bed have gone before.
Claire Pointon, the partnership’s Director of Customer, said: “After the last 18 months, we wanted our advert to really celebrate this as we look forward to a brighter future. We know our customers are excited for this festive season more than ever, as they reconnect with family and friends. Through the story of Skye and Nathan we celebrate friendship and are reminded of the joy of experiencing Christmas for the first time.”
Meanwhile, M&S has launched two ads this year for its food and clothing arms. The food ad features Tom Holland as the voice of Percy Pig and Dawn French as a Christmas fairy.
Sharry Cramond, Director of Marketing for M&S Food, said: “The M&S Christmas Food range this year is better than ever and who better to tell customers about our delicious Christmas food range than the national treasure and much-loved M&S icon himself, Percy Pig.”
The M&S clothing campaign stars Madisyn Ritland dancing through the iconic moments of Christmas.
Meanwhile, English actress Jenna Coleman stars in Boots ‘Bags of Joy’ film that highlights the joy of spending time with loved ones at Christmas.
Pete Markey, Chief Marketing Officer at Boots UK, said: “After the challenges of the past 18 months, we felt it was more important than ever for Boots to bring joy to the nation by telling an uplifting, positive story at Christmas. The story of Joy and her Nan embodies the spirit of a family Christmas and represents what many families will be doing this year, making heart-warming memories worth cherishing after a year apart in 2020.”
