Celebrity chef fronts Aldi ads

Aldi has signed celebrity chef Phil Vickery to front its advertising in a bid to raise its profile as a mainstream retailer. It is the first time the German-owned discount retailer has used a celebrity in its advertising.

Aldi has signed celebrity chef Phil Vickery (pictured) to front its advertising in a bid to raise its profile as a mainstream retailer. It is the first time the German-owned discount retailer has used a celebrity in its advertising.

Vickery will appear in a TV advertising campaign and will also develop a range of recipes to promote the quality and value of Aldi products. The campaign has been created by McCann Erickson Communications House, Manchester. The agency has also handled media buying and planning.

Aldi has already introduced 40 product lines on the chef’s recommendations, and he will also review potential new products.

The discount sector accounts for 5.6% of all grocery spending, and Aldi says it can see an opportunity to increase this figure by targeting a more upmarket demographic of customer. It claims to have seen a 50% rise in ABC1 consumers over the past three months and plans to attract more.

Paul Foley, managing director of Aldi UK, says: “The Phil Vickery partnership with Aldi marks a significant development for our brand. As a chef he has strict quality controls and will only work with a business that has standards that reflect his own. This partnership sends a strong message to the market that Aldi will continue to build on its reputation of offering quality products at affordable prices.

“The last three months have seen a shift in shoppers’ habits, which has led to an increase in our customer numbers. This partnership, as well as our business model that allows us to offer the very best for less, will see us continue growth post crunch.”

Aldi stocks only 1,000 lines compared with the 40,000 on offer in a typical supermarket and about 90% of its offers are own-label.