The Best Christmas Campaigns 2015

London - The festive season is very much in full swing, the Christmas trees have been decorated, the lights switched on, and the fabulous holiday windows have been revealed and the high street is hoping that they’ve come up with the very best advertising campaign to drive footfall and increase sales. Here at FashionUnited we are quite partial to a mince pie or two, so we thought with less than a month to go until the big day that we would round-up the very best Christmas advertising campaigns.

Make sure you vote on your favorite advert in the poll at the end of the article.

1. House of Fraser

Described as an ‘antidote to the festive fuzzy’, House of Fraser has gone for a music video-style ad for its campaign which made its debut on social photo-sharing app Instagram, ahead of its big TV launch. Set to the track ‘You Don’t Own Me’, the advert features an array of characters all fashionably styled, dancing to a routine choreographed by the dancer behind Justin Bieber’s latest video and directed by Ace Norton, who has recently worked with Jennifer Lopez. Unlike other retailers who have opted for the traditional heart-tugging formula, House of Fraser has placed its fashion at the forefront of its Christmas 2015 campaign.

House of Fraser's director of brand and creative, Tony Holdway, said: “This time of year is all about inspiring our customers to curate their own fashionable and bespoke Christmas, free from stress and brimming with ideas and individuality.

“Challenging the norm is exactly what we’ve tried to capture in this year’s multi-channel campaign and we hope it will encourage people to think far more openly and creatively this festive season. I think it’s a campaign like no other.”

2. John Lewis

Anticipation over John Lewis’ festive campaign is always high and this year the department store hasn’t disappointed with its ‘Man on the Moon’ campaign featuring a heartwarming story of a young girl who sends a present to a lonely old man on the moon. As well as showcasing the retailer’s Christmas stock, the campaign has also teamed up with Age UK in an effort to help raise awareness of the million older people who go a month without speaking to a friend, neighbour or family member.

Craig Inglis, customer director at John Lewis explains: “Our Christmas advert is once again all about going the extra mile to give someone the perfect gift. This year, though, the story is told in a uniquely creative and engaging way as we see Lily, our heroine, go to great lengths to connect with the Man on the Moon.

“We hope it inspires people to find really special gifts for their loved ones and through our partnership with Age UK, raises awareness of the issue of loneliness amongst older people and encourages others to support in any way they can.”

3. Debenhams

Department store chain Debenhams have continued with last year’s ‘Found It’ theme and enlisted Dawn French, Sarah Millican and James Nesbit for an injection of comedy for this Christmas advert. In 2014, the campaign saw children running around Debenhams finding their favourite gifts, this year it has shifted its focus to the emotion of the recipient to make the campaign more personal. There are a number of different executions of the ad as 10 and 20-second formats, ‘Found It For the fashionista’, ‘Found It For the dancing queen’, ’Found It For the weekender’, and ‘Found It For the littlest one’.

Richard Cristofoli, marketing director at Debenhams, said: “The ’Found It’ campaign was designed to celebrate the moment of finding and receiving the perfect gift from a loved one. It was created as a campaign idea that would have longevity, not burn out after its first year.

"Feedback on our 2014 campaign was extremely positive and we are pleased to return with an even stronger emotional connection this year.”

4. Harvey Nichols

Have you ever received a Christmas present that you didn’t want or like? Well, Harvey Nichols has used this as inspiration for its festive campaign focusing on how to avoid what it is calling ‘gift face’. In the ad, a woman is seen receiving a string of awful gifts from her family on Christmas Day, and ends with a showcase of items including designer shoes that would have avoided the dreaded ‘gift face’. The department store is also helping customers on social media recognise #GiftFace and suggesting gift options for this Christmas.

5. H&M

Following on from last year’s duet between Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett, fashion retailer H&M has stuck with another pop-star for this year’s Christmas campaign this time Katy Perry, who has written a new song, ‘Every Day is a Holiday’ for the adverts. The #HappyandMerry campaign shows Perry wearing a number of traditional Christmas outfits, including an ‘Elfie Selfie’ jumper featuring just the body of an elf up to the neckline, while appearing next to life-sized gingerbread men, oversized presents on roller skates and giant teddy bears.

6. Burberry

Luxury fashion house Burberry has recreated the opening scene of the classic British film Billy Elliot for its Christmas advertising campaign this year, featuring a star-studded cast including Elton John, who wrote the Billy Elliot stage show music, Julie Walters, who starred in the film, as well as some of its model favourites including Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Naomi Campaign and Romeo Beckham. Other British stars include James Bay, George Ezra, Michelle Dockery and James Corden.

"Billy Elliot is an incredible film full of so much joy and energy, so it was a real thrill and a great honour to be able to celebrate its 15 year anniversary through our festive campaign," said Christopher Bailey, Burberry chief creative and chief executive officer. "It was also a huge privilege to work with such amazing and iconic British talent - the cast are quite simply some of the biggest names in film, music and fashion and it was so much fun working with them all to make this special film."

7. Marks & Spencer

For Christmas 2015, Marks and Spencer has stepped away from one longer Christmas advert that it has done in time past, for two festive twists on its ‘The Art of…’ and ‘Adventures in…’ concepts, and continuing to step away from tradition this year’s campaign was launched to its two million Sparks club members, rather than on social or TV. ‘The Art of Christmas’ celebrates the moments that make up Christmas with a theatrical-style ad using a remix of Mark Ronson’s Uptown Funk, while the ‘Adventures in Christmas’ focuses on the indulgent food the retailer is offering this festive season.

Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, Executive Director of Marketing & International at M&S said; “Customers tell us they experience Christmas as a series of mini-moments and emotions, and each moment matters in building that bigger sense of occasion. As a result, our approach is more box-set than blockbuster epic; as we wanted to capture that feeling of anticipation and create an upbeat campaign that moves with the pace of the season and shows how M&S can help make each moment special”

8. Mulberry

Possible the most controversial of the Christmas campaigns has to be Mulberry, who have been inspired by the nativity Christmas story. The tongue-in-cheek #MulberryMiracle shows a woman receiving a Mulberry bag, followed by some unexpected visitors including the shepherds and kings who drop by to see the gift, a red handbag.

9. Coach

American luxury accessories brand Coach has gone for a humorous take on Christmas with its #GiveCoachOrElse campaign. In the brands debut holiday film, it asks ‘are you naughty or nice?’, and shows Santa Claus relaxing in the North Pole before being rudely and violently disturbed by an uninvited guest. Before Santa can greet the woman, she hits him and then helps herself to a Coach Swagger bag, and then changes Santa’s records from naughty to nice.

10. Net-a-Porter

Luxury e-tailers Net-a-Porter and Mr Porter have joined forces for their first joint campaign for the festive period. Taking inspiration from the world-class service for which both luxury brands are renowned, the short festive film ‘All For You,’ takes viewers inside the imagined world of Net-A-Porter and Mr Porter, where orders are selected by fashionably dressed employees before being perfectly packaged and spritzed with perfume before being sent out.

“Our first joint campaign, ‘All For You,’ highlights the year-round mission of our businesses: to deliver exceptional service and style to our customers around the globe, making Net-A-Porter and Mr Porter the ultimate online destinations for luxury gifting this holiday season,” explains Alison Loehnis, President of The Net-a-Porter Group.