Waitrose is launching a new brand campaign, The Gastronaut, following on from The Perfect Gift festive romcom by paying homage to another film genre: sci-fi.
At the heart of the campaign is a cinematic new ad, created by Wonderhood Studios, which follows the journey of an astronaut “Michael” as he travels through space. MG OMD has handled media.
It shows our protagonist pining after delicious food as he is repeatedly served his unsavoury looking space fuel in a pouch, until it becomes too much to bear and he takes matters into his own hands. As he hurtles towards earth he has a rush of core food-focused memories, from a recent family roast dinner to the cheese on his wedding day, before arriving back home to Waitrose for the food he loves most, prawn linguine.
The campaign highlights the struggles of a food lover living where food is only fuel – because, to them, food is more than functional, it is a way of life and they will go to great lengths for it.
The creative offers a dramatic representation of the food versus fuel debate; aimed at helping the audience recognise themselves as food lovers, too, and Waitrose as their “spiritual home”.
Emphasising both the genre of the creative and narrative of the campaign, the visual is accompanied by Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing“. Originally released in 1998 as the theme tune for sci0fi disaster movie Armageddon, this is claimed to be the first time the song has been used in any UK ad campaign.
Running across TV, BVOD, SVOD, cinema, social and large-scale out-of-home, the campaign will be supported by a far-reaching PR, influencer and in-store programme designed to spark conversation with food lovers across the UK.
Created by Tad Buxton and India Penny, and directed by Tom Speers through Smuggler, it marks the official launch of the supermarket’s ‘The home of food lovers’ platform, designed to spotlight the quality, care and obsession that the retailer has for delicious, ethically-sourced food.
In what is claimed to be “a world-first moment”, Waitrose will also “send” its ad into space, working with a specialist partner to transmit the film beyond Earth, a tongue in cheek nod to the idea that even the furthest journey would not stop a food lover coming home for the right meal.
Waitrose chief customer officer Nathan Ansell said: “Our customers are food lovers. They see food as more than fuel, but as a source of enjoyment. At Waitrose we get it – in fact, we share this love of food. We know that our customers would go the extra mile for the food they love, because we would too – from our industry leading animal welfare commitments to our top-quality suppliers and delicious produce.
“Our new Gastronaut campaign perfectly captures this spirit. It brings to life the extraordinary lengths food lovers would go to for their favourite food, even travelling across space. Food has a powerful way of reconnecting us with the places and moments that matter most. If this resonates with you, then you are a food lover and Waitrose is the home for you.”
Wonderhood executive creative directors Jack Croft and Stacey Bird added: “We loved going to space for this campaign and we’re so excited to share the next stage in Waitrose’s mission as the home of food lovers. This is an epic telling of a universal food lover insight; food is so much more than fuel. For food lovers, a life without the food they love most would be pretty bleak.”
MG OMD client business director Jane Ridehalgh commented “Building on what we had learned from previous campaigns, we leaned further into a film-led approach, using our understanding of how food lovers discover and engage with culture to shape the plan.
“We focused on high-impact, iconic OOH locations and made full use of their capabilities to elevate the creative, transforming the 90-second film into a standout, attention-grabbing experience. By placing the work in premium screen environments, including cinema, we ensured it showed up in the spaces where this kind of storytelling feels most powerful and most at home.”
The campaign will also see the relaunch of Waitrose’ Weekend newspaper as Your Week In Food. Landing in-store every Wednesday, the refreshed, food-first publication focuses on everyday food and drink moments, with recipes, trends, expert insight and inspiration.
This integrated approach is mirrored across Waitrose channels, with the Dish podcast moving to ongoing weekly episodes and My Waitrose – the retailer’s loyalty programme – evolving into a dedicated Food Lovers Club, reinforcing Waitrose as the home of food lovers across every touchpoint.
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