Visa's Christmas advert urges shoppers to hit the high street
The Visa 2019 Christmas advert has just been released – and it’s a heartwarming and rallying cry to the nation to support our local high streets.
The campaign features 13 real shopkeepers – including a bookseller, greengrocer, antique dealer and café owner - singing Queen’s Somebody to Love to inspire the nation to visit their high streets and shop locally this Christmas. And it definitely garners that Christmas spirit.
It’s the second year in a row that the Visa Christmas advert is supporting the UK’s independent retailers.
The emotive campaign is encouraging people to switch their focus from what they are buying to where they are buying, urging shoppers to show their local high streets some love this Christmas and beyond.
The campaign also features a nationwide competition inviting shopkeepers to warm up their vocal chords and recreate Visa’s Christmas advert to show why #WhereYouShopMatters. The winning retailer will see their advert air during a primetime advertising slot in the run-up to Christmas for millions to see.
Despite facing difficult times, research commissioned by Visa found that we still love to shop on the high street. Seven out of 10 consumers (73 per cent) say that shopping locally makes them feel happy, with two fifths (42 per cent) citing supporting local shops and knowing where their money is going as the main reason.
Spending time with friends and family (22 per cent) and offering a sense of community (21 per cent) were other reasons cited for why high streets make people happier. The research also reveals that half of consumers (50 per cent) feel that their high street gives them a sense of pride in their local community. Independent retailers echo this positive sentiment with almost three quarters (73 per cent) optimistic about the future of their high street, up from 52 per cent in 2018.
Jeni Mundy, Managing Director at Visa, UK & Ireland, said: 'High streets and independent retailers are at the heart of communities across the UK, providing employment and acting as the driving force behind local economies. That’s why, through our Christmas campaign, we want to inspire people to visit and support their high streets, not just over the crucial festive period, but throughout the year.
'We’re really excited to invite independent retailers to come together and recreate our advert, showcasing the best of the nation’s high streets and why 'Where You Shop Matters' to them. Through our campaign, we want to inspire everyone to shop locally this Christmas. Together we can all play a part in setting our high streets and communities up for success in 2020 and beyond.'
One of the stars of the 2019 campaign is Dodie Finamore who works in family business, Finamore, an antique and furniture restoration shop run by her father. The store is long-known in Walthamstow as a local treasure-trove for unique and vintage finds.
Commenting on her involvement in the campaign, Dodie said: 'I’ve been involved in the family business since I was a baby, having been born in a flat above the shop. Everyone on the high street has watched me grow up and I’ve seen how it’s evolved over the years too. It’s true that Christmas is such an important time for us small independent businesses, and I’m thrilled to be working with Visa on a campaign that has such a supportive message behind it.
'We’re a close-knit community of shopkeepers in Walthamstow, and do our best to support each other to succeed. I just hope they don’t get too much of a shock when they see me singing on the TV!'
Take a look at all the amazing Christmas adverts 2019 as they are released here.
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Visa Christmas Advert 2018 recap
Visa's Christmas advert last year also encouraged the nation to support the high street. Real shopkeepers – including a butcher, baker, bookseller and a florist – sang along to Mariah Carey’s iconic track 'All I Want For Christmas Is You'.
Watch the 2018 advert below:
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