Tesco aims to address the nation’s ‘joy shortage’ with this year’s Christmas ad

Tesco is on a mission to deliver consumers “joy” this Christmas after a year of financial challenges, as the supermarket launches its annual festive campaign.

‘The Christmas Party’ takes aim at the difficulty of the last few years, from Covid-19 to the cost of living crisis. The ad opens with the phrase “Britain, there’s a joy shortage” as the supermarket forms a team of people to take to the nation’s streets and remind people of the happiness the Christmas period can bring.

Created with agency BBH, the campaign features a range of Tesco products across food and home, with a soundtrack of The Final Countdown by Europe.

“It’s very important that our seasonal campaigns reflect how our customers genuinely feel and what we know they are looking for,” says Tesco’s chief customer officer Alessandra Bellini.Tesco banks on convenience and range to fend off discounters

The grocer’s own survey of 2,000 nationally representative UK adults suggests more than a third of consumers (36%) feel Christmas is more important this year than previous festive seasons, with 26% looking forward to the season more than usual. Some 87% of respondents claim Christmas brings them joy.

Bellini adds: “Through our campaign, we take a look at those moments during the festive period that unite us all…We want to help everyone enjoy the best bits of Christmas, no matter their budget, and so we’ve also included just some of our many little helps that will make your money go further.”

The 60-second hero film will launch on YouTube and TV tomorrow (6 November) during ITV’s I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! Additional activity will run across TV, press, outdoors, radio, social, in-store and PR.

Tesco’s theme this year is similar to 2021’s campaign, which focused on the notion that ‘This Christmas, nothing’s stopping us’.

Last year’s effort received 5,000 complaints, after some viewers disliked the Father Christmas character showing his Covid-19 passport at border control. However, the Advertising Standards Agency deemed the ad didn’t break any rules.