1 week Ago By The Telegraph
John Lewis has included its Oxford Street shop in its Christmas advert for the first time as high street footfall declines. This year’s features Sally, an elder sister, rushing into the 15 minutes before it closes to find her younger sister a present. Riffling through a clothes rail of dresses, she stumbles through a wardrobe into an attic, where a younger version of her sister is waiting.
Viewers are then taken through a number of memories for the sisters, including the birth of a son, dancing with their mother in the kitchen and walking in on teenagers kissing. The background dissolves to black with Sally and her sister ice skating in front of a large pile of presents. She is then catapulted onto a floral sofa with the youngest version of her sister, who whispers into her ear.
Sally emerges back into the shop holding a pre-wrapped gift and finds her sister as she is now outside. As the camera pans away, the youngest version of her sister is seen in the shop window. The shop-based scenes were filmed on a Sunday night in October, with film crews moving in as the final shoppers left and finishing up before 7am to maintain the secrecy around the advert.
Charlotte Lock, customer director for , said: “Our shops are the beating heart of our brand and our customers love the ritual of Christmas shopping there – so we wanted to give the store a starring role in our ad for the first time.” It is the second year that advertising company , best known for the Thatcher-era posters, has been responsible for the advert. Franki Goodwin, chief creative officer at Saatchi & Saatchi, said: “We’ve all been there – time’s running out, and you’re still looking for the perfect gift for someone in your life who’s impossible to shop for.
That’s why I believe viewers will truly connect with our heroine.” The high street has continued to struggle as more . Footfall was down by 3.
6 per cent in the year to October, and there have been more then 65,000 closures, according to consultants Altus Group, the majority of which were small, independent retailers. John Lewis has had a . It scrapped its chief executive position last month after and chairman, stepped down.
Losses narrowed to n in the six months to the end of July, having been double that the year before, as it battles to regain momentum. The family-focused advert marks a departure from the cartoon characters that have featured in several John Lewis Christmas adverts previously, including “Snapper”, a venus flytrap that replaced the traditional festive tree in the 2023 rendition. After sales of the toy based on “Edgar”, the dragon character in the , meant that shops ran out of stock, John Lewis bosses ordered 15pc more of the “Snapper” toys.
But staff members said that they were giving the toys away for free to children and those spending more than £50, after the venus flytrap toys failed to capture the imagination of shoppers. The retailer said the £18 toys had proved popular. John Lewis is also running a competition to find a cover star for the musical backing to the advert.
It is currently using the original version of the Verve’s Sonnet, but the winner will record with t for a special Christmas edition. Previous musical accompaniments have included , Bastille’s cover of Can’t Fight This Feeling and singing Your Song..
