The 2025 Christmas advertising battle has officially opened, naturally with retailers first out of the blocks. And, with only 53 shopping days until December 25, it seems there is no time like the present to roll out friendly giants, the Grinch, festive fashion, celebs and even hair products as the fight for seasonal spend begins.
First up is Marks & Spencer, which will be looking to put 2025 as far behind it as possible following the annus horribilis triggered by April’s ransomware attack which has cost the business an estimated £300m in lost revenue.
This year’s strategy covers fashion, home and beauty, with a “product-first” campaign consisting of a number of mini films which will drop “chunks of content” over the festive season, instead of one single “blockbuster”. The retailer believes this “more closely reflects how customers really shop” during the build-up to Christmas.
The campaign, being devised by Mother, with media through Mindshare, will be rolled out in three phases.
The first stage, “Give the Gift” has already launched and shows two 15 second clips of someone enjoying their festive gifts from M&S. The second stage, “Host with the Most,” will be released later this week, with a focus on partywear, and the third, “Get your Christmas on”, will focus on winter fashion, and is set to go live on December 4. The activity will span digital, social, print, TV and out-of-home.
Meanwhile, Argos is channelling Guy Ritchie in its 2025 campaign in which “mascots” Connie and Trevor force Will from The Inbetweeners (actor Simon Bird) to go festive shopping, driving him to a foreboding warehouse.
Naturally, it turns out not quite as dark as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, as when they arrive, the place is full of everything he needs for his family this season, so they are soon forgiven.
The idea, created by T&P for a brand that has worked with the agency for 20 years, follows on from autumn’s intervention – in which Connie and Trevor confronted a customer who had dared to claim Argos was “only good for toys”. The duo return to their mission to reframe Argos as a home of style and premium gifts.
For Asda, this Christmas is all about the Grinch, with a 90-second hero film, created by Lucky Generals and directed by Dexter Fletcher, seeing the cynical, grumpy, green, furry, pear-shaped humanoid creature with a cat-like face huffing and puffing about the holiday when he sees the prices of essentials and luxuries alike.
He takes enough umbrage to begin asking, “Are they taking the p…” just as a fortunately-timed trumpet sounds.
The Grinch then launches into an alternative version of Dean Martin’s Let It Snow with the lyrics directly stating that the “prices this year are frightful”. Suddenly, attracted by the green glow of the Asda logo, he’s drawn into a store where he’s greeted with an abundant range of products at prices that make his wallet happy. Soon enough – but not without cheer, effort, and persuasion – he even starts to like shopping. Asda finally manages to do what many others have failed: get the Grinch to enjoy Christmas.
“A Very Merry Grinchmas” spans the full-suite of Asda’s marketing channels, including print, out-of-home, and more. Along with the 60-second brand ad, a 90-second film will premiere on Asda social channels while the Grinch will continue to pop up throughout the festive season in three-second mission-led formats, showcasing some of Asda’s mouth-watering festive foods.
Sainsbury’s is also going large this year, with the return of The Big Friendly Giant, only this time he’s got one of his “human bean”-guzzling older brothers to contend with.
This year’s spot, devised by New Commercial Arts, sees the Roald Dahl creation team up with new Sainsbury’s colleague Annie to save Christmas dinner as a new unexpected guest, “The Greedy Giant”, who raids homes around the country for items from Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference range.
Sainsbury’s marketing director Radha Davies said: “We want to help our customers have an unforgettable and magical Christmas. Sainsbury’s is here to help the nation get ready for anything during the festive season, from spectacular centrepieces to showstopping desserts, our innovative range of high-quality Taste the Difference food makes hosting easy. There’s something for every occasion and to bring joy to all, even when the unexpected strikes.”
The 90” ad will be supported by a series of 60”, 40” and 20” films across TV, social and online.
Sainsbury’s has also launched a range of BFG-inspired food, home, clothing and gifting items featuring illustrations by frequent Roald Dahl collaborator Sir Quentin Blake. In order to spread the message of the campaign further, it is also teaming up with long term charity partner Comic Relief to distribute over 5 million meals to families facing food poverty and there will be a special version of this year’s advert highlighting this all-important work and the brand’s ongoing anti food poverty programme.
Finally, to a festive debut from TreasureTress, which claims to be Europe’s largest natural hair product discovery box.
Launching in partnership with creative content and production studio All Things, “A Curly Christmas” is a 30-second spot running on Channel 4 through to November 23, and marking a major evolution for the brand as it celebrates its 10th anniversary.
Founded in 2015 by Jamelia Donaldson, the business began as a personal solution to the lack of curl-friendly options abroad. Generations of women grew up with no education, no representation, and no products made for their texture. Beauty ads did not show curls unless they were being tamed, and supermarket shelves rarely stocked Black-owned brands.
Donaldson said: “Being on national TV at Christmas time is a huge milestone for us – not just as a brand, but as a community. TreasureTress was built to reflect and serve women who rarely saw themselves in the mainstream, and to have our message land during primetime is deeply emotional.
“We knew we wanted to create something real – no stock footage, no shortcuts – and All Things understood that and made it happen. They helped us bring our vision to life with care, craft, and commitment, all while staying true to who we are and what the community we belong to, and serve, represent.”
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