Marks & Spencer Debuts 2015 Christmas Campaign to its Two Million Sparks Members

Marks & Spencer (M&S) has today unveiled its plans for Christmas 2015 - putting a fresh, festive twist on its popular The Art of and Adventures In formats¹ to deliver food & fashion campaigns that celebrate the many moments that make up Christmas. In a move away from the Christmas ad epic, the M&S 2015 campaign is a series of seven stylish, shorter ads that synchronize with the different milestones on the festive calendar. From the party season to the joy and exhaustion of Christmas morning, M&S products take centre stage to show how the retailer has each of these moments covered, from tinsel to tuxedos to turkey. Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, Executive Director of Marketing & International at M&S said; “Customers tell us they experience Christmas as a series of mini-moments and emotions, and each moment matters in building that bigger sense of occasion. As a result, our approach is more box-set than blockbuster epic; as we wanted to capture that feeling of anticipation and create an upbeat campaign that moves with the pace of the season and shows how M&S can help make each moment special” The 2015 Christmas campaign will be the most digitally focussed to date. In a break with tradition, M&S will not debut its ad on social or TV channels but will instead preview its campaign to the two million members of its new membership club Sparks. Each member will receive an email with The Art of Christmas compilation film this afternoon ahead of the 5pm go live on M&S.com and social channels. The Art of Christmas The Art of Christmas campaign kicks off with an upbeat compilationfilm that takes the audience through the full series of Christmas moments. The sophisticated, theatrical style sees each moment played out in a larger than life manner, with oversized props, choreographed sequences and a sprinkling of festive nostalgia. Seen from the perspective of wide eyed eight year old Neve, the screen erupts into The Art of Making an Entrance and models strut their stuff in an array of glittering partywear. The scene switches to The Art of the Night Before, as parents put the finishing touches in place, but 5am soon heralds the arrival of The Art of Noise, as children wake on Christmas morning and bounce on their oversized beds. In The Art of Surprise three beautifully wrapped giant presents spill open to reveal the recipients inside and Neve jumps for joy at her cuddly polar bear. The Art of The Feast pans through a sumptuous banquet packed with exquisite festive food and chattering relatives. Finally, the perennial Christmas image of Morecombe & Wise dances onto the screen, as the family settle into their supersized sofa for The Art of 40 Winks. Catering for customers’ appetite for bite sized consumption of content, M&S will air 20” edits of The Art of Making an Entrance, The Art of Noise and The Art of Surprise in tune with consumers’ shifting priorities. For example, The Art of Making an Entrance will air in mid to late November as party invitations firm up and outfit planning is in full swing. Adventures In Christmas Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne commented, “Customers’ festive culinary experience is no longer focused on just the Christmas Day feast. Adventures In Christmas reflects our desire to inject more gourmet inspiration into the season’s calendar.” Adventures In Christmas kicks off with a compilation film of delicious food moments; Adventures In Surprises, Adventures In Stars, Adventures In Glitz and Adventures In The Big Day. Each culinary moment has been edited into 20” and 30” formats to showcase what is special and different about M&S food. The cutting edge style brings M&S’ innovative creations to life with close up shots of the mouth-watering ingredients and exquisite festive details. The four ads will run in stages from the 15^th November right up to 23^rd December to provide inspiration for the different food moments – beginning with Adventures in Surprises to assist with party planning and culminating with Adventures In the Big Day. From 5pm tonight, customers can shop The Art of Christmas on M&S.com and view the ad on M&S social channels #TheArtofChristmas. The ad will air on Sunday 8^th November during the series finale of Downton Abbey on ITV1.  Adventures In Surprises will preview to Sparks customers on the 13^th November before the campaign begins on TV from Sunday 15^th November.