Supermarket Waitrose Saves Party Mishaps in a Christmas Ad for Fun Grown-ups

The tree is lit and the hosts are bedazzled for their Christmas party, but things keep going wrong. First the guests arrive too early, then two people get locked in the bathroom and the power goes out. 

Yet the revelers can overlook these mishaps, because the real star of the party is food like mince pies, salmon mousse and panettone from Waitrose, the premium British supermarket.  

Waitrose has a simple message this holiday season: “Even if things go awry, great food makes it all better,” said Nathan Ansell, the retailer’s customer director. 

As the Christmas advertising frenzy begins–often called the U.K.’s “Super Bowl”–Waitrose is trying to stand apart by defying holiday ad tropes. There are no saccharine family gatherings or lush banquets in this year’s campaign, which instead represents “a fun, grown-up Christmas,” said Franki Goodwin, chief creative officer of agency Saatchi & Saatchi. 

The brand’s creative departure comes after Saatchi & Saatchi earlier this year won the advertising account for Waitrose and its sister retailer John Lewis (whose much-anticipated Christmas ad will be released later in November). This is also the first holiday campaign under Ansell, who joined Waitrose at the beginning of 2023. 

The new marketing leader and agency aim to inject the brand with more humor and modernity, while also “making it more accessible,” said Ansell. Because Waitrose is an upmarket grocery store, it is typically seen as a destination for special occasions rather than an everyday shop.  

The campaign continues Waitrose’s tagline, “Food to Feel Good About,” which it introduced in 2022 to emphasize quality, taste, value and ethics. 

The ad’s characters who attend the adults-only holiday party are more representative of the brand’s demographic–“they happen to be food lovers and people who love to host,” said Goodwin. There is even a cameo from Graham Norton, an Irish comedian and popular TV host in the U.K. 

Despite the celebrity appearance and fancy food, Waitrose’s ad is about “embracing imperfections” and the humorous aspects of holidays, Goodwin explained. 

Filmmaker Autumn de Wilde–who made the 2020 movie Emma–directed the ad and helped create its “heightened sitcom vibes,” Goodwin added. The soundtrack is Depeche Mode’s 1981 hit Just Can’t Get Enough. 

Not just for Christmas

In addition to the 90-second film, which debuts on Nov. 2, Waitrose will run product-focused ads spotlighting mince pies, party food, turkey and desserts. It also released a teaser on Halloween, in which a woman dressed as a witch offers young trick or treaters a tray of mince pies–a British treat usually associated only with Christmas. 

Though kids aren’t invited to the party in the main commercial, the brand is appealing to families by sponsoring the popular competition show The Voice on British broadcaster ITV. 

Mindful of the ongoing cost of living crisis, Waitrose will also feature an array of products at different price points in its campaign. The focus on a house party also reflects the fact that “people may be hosting more at home and going out less” in the current climate, said Goodwin. 

As budget supermarkets like Aldi and Lidl have gained traction in the downward economy, Waitrose faces a marketing challenge to break away from an inaccessible image while maintaining its focus on quality. Ansell said Waitrose’s customer numbers have increased by about 800,000 so far this year thanks to a campaign in February that promoted value and price cuts, as well as product innovations such as its recent Japan Menyu range. 

As Goodwin said of the holiday push: “People may be coming to Waitrose for Christmas, but we want to make sure they come after Christmas too.” 

CREDITS:

Client: Waitrose
Advertising Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi
CCO: Franki Goodwin
Executive Creative Director: Raphael Basckin 
Creative Director: Ashley Milhollin 
Copywriters: Sam Pascoe, Olivia Weston
Art Directors: Heath Sims, Emily Downing, Christina Leaver 
Head of Design: Kris Miklos  
Planning Partner: Craig Adams 
Managing Partner: Alice Flanagan
Business Lead: Nadia Singh
Account Directors: Sarah Covill, Jennifer Mizzi, Leela McElroy  
Account Manager: James Hall 
Executive Production Manager: Matt Hodges
Executive Producer: Adam Walker
Integrated Executive Producer:  Hannah Wood
Senior Integrated Producers: Jessica Nelson, Sarah Beastall, Michelle Walton, Michelle Kuginis
Production Assistant: Mickalah Aldridge 
Production Company:  Anonymous Content
Director: Autumn de Wilde
Director of Photograph: Christopher Blauvelt
Producer: Peter Knowles
Editor: Dominic Leung @ Marsheen
Post-Production Company: Rascal
Post-production Producer: Ben Spalding 
Sound Engineer: Sam Ashwell @ 750mph
Casting Director: Claire Curry of Claire Curry Castin
Media Agency: MG OMD