Ad of the Day | Dobbies' "Christmas, in Every Sense" Campaign Celebrates Its Multisensory Shopping Experience

Nov. 01, 2024

Dobbies Garden Centres has unveiled its 2024 Christmas campaign, "Christmas, in Every Sense". The multichannel push was developed in partnership with creative agency elvis.

Dobbies tasked elvis with creating a campaign to encourage people to visit stores this Christmas, leveraging its magical in-store environment, festive menu and events. The campaign aims to drive footfall, sales and brand equity among a core audience of people aged 55+, as well as those aged 44+, alongside younger families.

‘Christmas, in Every Sense’ is inspired by the insight that shopping at Dobbies allows people to truly feel the joy of Christmas, demonstrating how the retailer brings colour, natural life and emotion to the festive period.

The campaign showcases the multisensory experience of visiting a Dobbies store, encouraging shoppers to ditch online shopping for a more joyful, real-life experience. It features playfully heightened sound effects from the tactile in-store environment, including tree rustles, bell twinkles and drink clinks, as well as audible reactions from shoppers and macro close-ups that highlight the tactile nature of the products.

Running across social, digital, audio and in-store channels, each spot engages the senses, whether audibly or visually.

A series of films captures one person’s experience as she abandons online shopping for a day at Dobbies with her loved ones. Each film features close-ups of spaces throughout the store, audible tactile moments and the protagonist’s many reactions, concluding with the line: “Dobbies. Christmas, in every sense.”

Elvis has partnered with A Million Ads to create dynamic audio ads opening with the line: “When Christmas shopping gets a bit too click, click, sigh, and could do with a bit more sniff, mmm, ahhh!” The creative changes based on the listener’s location and how long remains until Christmas, as well as promoting different product categories.

In various digital formats and in-store, the campaign brings to life the tactile nature of Dobbies, teasing the scents, textures, noises, and tastes that the retailer excels at bringing together.

Media planning and buying is by EssenceMediacom and Clean Digital.

Neale Horrigan, Executive Creative Director, elvis, said:

“At Dobbies, you can immerse yourself in the magic of the season. "Christmas, in Every Sense" captures that special moment when you step into the store and your senses come alive with festive sights, scents and sounds. It’s all about experiencing everything you love about Christmas.”

 

Kirsty Rockey, Head of Brand, Dobbies Garden Centres, added:

“Buying Christmas gifts sometimes feels more like a chore than a celebration, but shopping at Dobbies brings the festive spirit to life. This dynamic, digitally-led campaign showcases how we enable people to enjoy all the best bits of Christmas, with our great range of products, delicious food and drink, and a vibrant atmosphere filled with sights and, of course, Santa.”