This new Tesco stuff’s a bit queer

So the message is that they’re turning £5 of Clubcard vouchers into £10.

I have to confess I had to watch it a few times before I got that.

Do you know why?

It’s because there was a Furby singing the word ‘Hello’ from that old Lionel Richie song. That kind of distracted me. It still distracts me. The whole explanation is here, including a bit where Matt Atkinson, group marketing and digital officer at Tesco, described this year’s Christmas at Tesco campaign as “a bit different”. He can say that again.

He adds: “We will focus on a single mission; celebrating the things that matter this Christmas, and making them better.”

Call me a thick wanker, but I don’t think the above ad does that.

This whole thing seems a bit strange to me.

It’s Wieden and Kennedy, the UK’s most creative agency, and Tesco, the UK’s biggest brand.

So why does the work feel somewhat uncreative and small?

Here’s another one:

Wieden’s blog sez: ‘Our first ad for Tesco broke at the weekend. It’s a tactical campaign to support their ‘£5 off when you spend £40’ offer.
We’re very pleased to have our first work for Tesco out there.’

That’s quite a humble apologetic way of going about it. Usually the Wiedens blog offers a bit more depth of explanation. Why so quiet? And small?

It’s a bit queer, isn’t it?