Waitrose

For Christmas 2025, Waitrose set out to stand apart in one of the most competitive periods of the advertising calendar. Building on the success of previous festive campaigns, the brand launched The Perfect Gift, a rom-com-inspired mini-film starring Keira Knightley, Joe Wilkinson and a homemade pie that quickly became the star of the show. The objective was to create a Christmas campaign that entertained audiences, generated conversation and helped Waitrose cut through the seasonal noise.

Rather than treating The Perfect Gift as a traditional Christmas advert, Waitrose approached it like a major film release. The campaign was designed to build anticipation, encourage active viewing and create a shared cultural moment across TV, cinema, OOH, social and digital channels. Every touchpoint worked together to extend the storytelling and keep audiences engaged throughout the festive period.

By working seamlessly across channels, Waitrose cut through the crowded Christmas landscape, creating a campaign that felt cinematic, playful and culturally relevant – one audiences actively chose to watch, share and talk about.

The campaign launched with a UK-first ITV network roadblock, supported by TV, social and digital cutdowns that acted as movie trailers, driving audiences towards the full film. Cinema placements extended the experience further, ensuring The Perfect Gift reached audiences in premium entertainment environments.

OOH played a leading role in bringing the campaign to life in the real world. National large-format DOOH and Waterloo Motion delivered scale and visibility, while the centrepiece was PIEMAX: a giant turkey pie takeover of London’s BFI IMAX. Inspired by the film’s hero prop, the 1,734-square-metre installation transformed one of the UK’s most iconic advertising locations into a festive spectacle. The moment was further amplified through social content, helping the Waitrose Giant Pie become one of the most talked-about OOH activations of the Christmas season.

The Waitrose Christmas Campaign successfully transformed a festive advert into a cross-channel cultural moment. By combining cinematic storytelling with an attention-grabbing OOH activation, the campaign generated widespread conversation across social media, PR and earned channels. At the heart of this success was the Waitrose Giant Pie, which extended the campaign beyond the screen and created a highly shareable real-world experience. Together, the film, media strategy and PIEMAX takeover helped The Perfect Gift stand out in a crowded Christmas marketplace and become one of the season’s most memorable campaigns.