Smile, it’s just what you didn’t want for Christmas… the same ad as your rivals

Harvey Nichols, Lidl and Currys PC World have all produced festive ads which show people mustering up enthusiasm for less-than-perfect presents
“Gift face”: actress Antonia Bernath puts on her best fake smile in the Harvey Nichols advert
Lizzie Edmonds @lizzieedmo13 November 2015

Unwrapping the same present three times on Christmas Day can quickly put a dampener on festivities.

But not so much, perhaps, as using the idea of lacklustre gifts for your Christmas advert — and finding two competitors have done the same.

Harvey Nichols, Lidl and Currys PC World have all produced films which show people mustering up enthusiasm for less-than-perfect presents.

Harvey Nichols’s “Avoid #Giftface” campaign, unveiled today, shows a woman sitting with her family on Christmas Day. She opens gifts such as a dictionary, a set of towels and a hand-knitted jumper. Despite her disappointment, the woman — played by London actress Antonia Bernath, who appeared in Downton Abbey — manages not to offend her loved ones by adopting a false smile or “gift face”.

Jeff Goldblum gives advice on looking pleased with disappointing gifts in the Currys PC World advert

Lidl’s School of Christmas advert, released a week earlier, shows customers being taught how to have a successful festive season. One of the sessions includes advice on perfecting your reaction to unexciting gifts. It also released a second video focusing on reacting to being given a bad present.

Currys PC World released five videos last week starring actor Jeff Goldblum. One of the “Spare The Act” clips shows the Jurassic Park star teaching someone how to look pleased when he receives talcum powder.

Asked about the similarity between the campaigns, advertising expert Jon White, of global brand consultancy Elmwood, said: “It is unfortunate. It is bad luck that these brands to have chosen the same idea.

“Obviously you don’t know what other brands are going to do when you are looking at your Christmas campaign and it is tough. It is a common theme that we all recognise and we have all been there — trying to look happy when really thinking, ‘oh this is uncomfortable, this isn’t what I wanted’. I think the videos are very on-brand and are markedly different to John Lewis’s.”

The Lidl campaign uses the same idea as the Curry's ad

Shadi Halliwell, group marketing and creative director at Harvey Nichols said: “Harvey Nichols has a long history of creating award-winning campaigns that are insightful, brave and often brutally honest. It’s part of our DNA. This Christmas, we know our #GiftFace campaign will resonate with customers and bring a smile to their faces.”

Harvey Nichols' poster campaign 

A spokesman for Lidl said: “We wanted to find a way of helping to make this time of year a little more stress-free for families. Our hope is that Lidl’s #SchoolofChristmas will do just that.”

The Harvey Nichols advert was created by adam&eveDDB, the firm behind the John Lewis Christmas The Man On The Moon campaign.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in