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Coles launches first Christmas campaign under Lisa Ronson, thanking Aussies for 100 years of patronage

Coles’ chief marketing officer Lisa Ronson has unveiled the supermarket’s 2019 Christmas campaign, with the hero TVC set to a cover of The Golden Girls’ ‘Thank you for being a friend’.

Ronson told Mumbrella people can find Christmas and the associated entertaining stressful, and she wanted the campaign to show Coles can ease the load, as it has been doing for over 100 years.

“Christmas is a really, really busy and important time for our customers.,” Ronson told Mumbrella. “Obviously Coles has been part of Australia’s Christmas for over 100 years, so I really wanted to get that emotional connection. Christmas is a very emotional time for our customers when they’re spending time with their friends and their family… We want to make this time of year as easy as we possibly can, because there’s a lot of entertaining, and sometimes a bit of anxiety, we found through our research – in the lead-up from an entertainment sense, and then what to put on the table for Christmas. So we’re tying to help that – so Christmas made easy if you like.”

In addition, Coles wanted to thank its customers for letting them be part of the magical time of year, she said.

“We really wanted to show an appreciation for those around us and thank the people who have let us be a part of their Christmas for over 100 years,” Ronson said in a statement.

“The theme of this year’s campaign really aligns to our vision of becoming Australia’s most-trusted retailer. Throughout the campaign, we want to pay tribute to the people who have made Christmas truly magical over the years, starting with our millions of customers.”

The ad features Coles ambassador Curtis Stone.

The campaign, by Coles’ creative agency Big Red, premieres on prime-time TV tonight.

Ronson said the ad’s nostalgic feel and soundtrack should prompt consumers to pay attention.

“I’ve seen Aldi’s Christmas campaign, I haven’t seen Woolworths’ yet, but they are quite different, and it really is back to Coles grassroots in the Australian community for over 100 years – we really wanted to acknowledge and thank our team members and our customers and our suppliers for sticking by us and working with us, in an important time of year, being Christmas, for all that time,” Ronson told Mumbrella.

“People know the song, they love the song, having a different artist sing the song really wrapped up the whole emotional messaging to really fit with that nostalgic imagery. I think so. I think it’s the music. The imagery will really arrest people, because it is quite different. When you look at a lot of other ads, whether they’re Christmas or not at the moment, it does have that really impactful opening. The song will really grab people’s attention, and they will ant to watch it.”

Ronson joined Coles in March.

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