Greggs gives festive shoppers what they really want.

Listen to article

The commercial challenge

The commercial challenge

Although one of the nation’s most popular high street retailers, Greggs is not always seen as a go-to destination at Christmas time. We needed to raise their festive profile to ensure the brand received the attention it deserved.

The human problem

People have enough to think about at Christmas without adding another retailer to their repertoire. So much festive activity is crammed in from the 1st December or even earlier, we had to give shoppers a very good reason to put Greggs on their Christmas list.

Our insight

At their best, Greggs makes life simpler for the nation. It’s an everyday pick-me-up, grounded in reality. Something that’s very much needed in the festive season, because, although Christmas is fun, it’s hard work.

From refreshing tired shoppers to taking care of sore party heads, and providing last minute tasty little gifts, we believed Greggs could give customers what they really want.

Our answer

Working closely alongside our colleagues in the Greggs’ marketing team, we evolved the distinctive blue theme that our designers had initially developed the previous year, and commissioned noted illustrator Jan Bielecki to produce stylised images of ‘real world’ cityscapes. Then, with bright, festive typography we brought to life the realities of Christmas in our product messaging, showcasing Greggs as an invaluable Yuletide solution.

Punch Above Your Weight

Our campaign was fully integrated, encompassing point of sale, packaging, digital screens, and gift cards. In the year of the pandemic and without ATL support, our in-store work helped Greggs outperformed their nearest rivals in this key period. In terms of year on year customer volume, Greggs beat Costa by 5%, KFC by 13% and Subway by 23%.

A Merry Christmas for Greggs’ and the platform for a Happy New Year.