The cast is again deliberately inclusive of different family makeups, this time featuring a grandmother, a single mom and her children. Hanley pointed to the fact that 15% of U.K. households are single-parent families, a group whom the brand had not yet represented in a Christmas ad.
High holiday stakes
An emotional story may still be the campaign’s centerpiece, but this year’s effort is the “most interactive and shoppable ever,” according to the brand.
Along with digital activations, press, out-of-home and window displays, Snapper will appear as a 15-foot installation on the side of John Lewis’ Oxford Street store and on Kew Gardens’ Christmas light trail in London. Every product that appears in the film will be on sale, with shoppable formats through YouTube, Channel 4 and Google.
In another first for the campaign, the character’s adventures will continue in a series of episodic product films showcasing other brands sold at John Lewis, such as Nespresso coffee machines and Estée Lauder skincare.
The interactive and shoppable elements emphasize a wider array of offerings at the retailer, which has been trying to turn around its business. The company reported a pre-tax loss of $72.4 million (£59 million) in the first half of 2023, and continues to face pressures from inflation and cautious shoppers during the cost of living crisis. In October, it ousted its chair, Sharon White, who will step down at the end of her term in 2025.
These business troubles mean the stakes are higher for John Lewis’ Christmas campaign, one of the rare ads that the general public anticipates. As the brand evolves its marketing, it wants to ensure that it will be a key part of people’s holiday traditions no matter how they evolve.
