From The Great British Bake Off to instagrammed food photography, Britain is fast establishing a reputation as a nation of food lovers and aspiring cooks. This week M&S unveils its pioneering new advertising campaign designed to tease the nation’s increasingly discerning taste buds – with a celebration of the creativity, craftsmanship and passion behind M&S Food.
Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne – Executive Director of Marketing and International at M&S said: “Over the last decade, consumers’ culinary tastes have become more adventurous and Britain’s love affair with food has really ignited. Our new campaign reflects this shift and uses a different language to the price focused supermarkets. It brings to life the hundreds of new ideas we have in our Food Halls every month by showcasing the sensual and surprising aspects of food – like its textures and movement – in a modern, stylish and precision format.”
M&S Food is the hero of the new 'Adventures In' campaign, as it features some of the hottest product trends for autumn 2014, from patisserie style desserts to the first range of authentic Mexican meals. The innovation and expertise of the M&S food development team is made clear with stunning shots of the retailer’s recent launches, including the first ever runny yolk Scotch egg.
Steve Rowe, Executive Director of Food at M&S said: “In today’s competitive market, this is a campaign only M&S could create. It captures the unique place the brand occupies by championing the stories behind our food - from first-to-market innovative products, award-winning quality to our exceptional sourcing standards – helping assert M&S Food Halls as a destination for food that is special and different.”
This week’s launch also marks ten years since the unveiling of M&S’ iconic Not Just Any Food series. The retailer is aiming to once again raise the bar in food advertising with a campaign that uses never been seen filming techniques to appeal to the latest generation of food lovers.
The new ad also gives a nod to one of the most memorable products of the Not Just Any series, the oozing Melt in the Middle Chocolate Pudding, which saw sales increase 3500% as a result of the campaign. This decade’s version is the Jaffa Sphere, a stunning chocolate mousse with a gooey orange centre, hand-made and created by the retailer’s dessert expert – previously the patisserie chef at the world-famous Mandarin Oriental.
Adventures In run across TV, digital and print formats, highlighting different features of M&S Food. Set to an instrumental version of the Clean Bandit track 'Rather Be' the new 60 second ad is billed as Adventures In Imagination and promises over 100 new ideas in M&S Food Halls every month.
The ad will be supported by a series of three 20 second Adventures In Discovery ads, designed to inspire customers to discover new authentic dishes within the M&S Taste range – including the Japanese Gyoza, Mexican Steak Burritos and Thai Chicken Penang.
The new campaign will reach all elements of the customers’ M&S shopping experience – from the TV ad to Food Halls and even a rebranding of the M&S food delivery fleet.