Classic Halifax mascot Howard Brown changes allegiance to RBS in playful stunt
In an interesting turn of events, Halifax’s famous frontman, Howard Brown, has switched his allegiance and opened an account with the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to promote its £175 switcher offer.
RBS hijacks Halifax frontman Howard Brown who switches accounts
Brown first appeared on screens back in 2000, where he moved desks from his job as a Halifax customer services representative to the singing and dancing face of the bank.
He is famous for a series of adverts that modified the lyrics of hit songs to deliver the banks ‘extra’ promise in a catchy way. Tom Jones’ ‘Sex Bomb’ became ‘Extra! Extra! (I know you want more) while Baha Men’s ‘Who Let The Dogs Out?’ became ‘Who Give You Extra?’
His tenure as the face of Halifax’s ads ended in 2008 when he took on a role in its public relations department. However, he left the bank that made him a household name in 2011 when Halifax hired Adam&Eve as its ad agency and decided his face no longer fitted the brand.
Marking his first return to the world of advertising, since he made a cameo in an advert for Hotels.com, to emphasise how easy it is to switch banks, RBS has got Brown to do so, in a public way.
Opting to open accounts with the RBS, Brown was spotted at its St. Andrew Square brand in Edinburgh, and its Gordon St. branch in Glasgow.
Bruno Genovese, head of Royal Bank of Scotland current accounts, said: “Switching bank accounts couldn’t be easier and we hope our highest ever guaranteed switcher offer will give an added incentive for those who have been thinking about switching banks - it clearly has for Howard.”
