John Lewis asserts ‘Never knowingly undersold’ position

John Lewis is rolling out a £6m advertising campaign to drive its “Never knowingly undersold” proposition.

The ad campaign, which the retailer claims is its biggest ever, will break on Friday (23 April) the in the ad break during Coronation Street on ITV.

It has been created by Adam & Eve.

It includes a series of ads that show a woman progressing through the key stages of her life from giving birth to becoming a grandmother, and how the John Lewis brand is a part at every stage.

The 10, 60 and 90-second TV spots will air across terrestrial and satellite TV channels for six weeks.

They will feature a re-recorded version of Billy Joel’s “She’s Always a Woman”, sung by the Guillemots.

Craig Inglis, John Lewis marketing director, says: “For a long time Never Knowingly Undersold has been perceived as just a price promise, but it’s more than that: it’s about the total value we offer our customers, about the quality of the products we sell and the added value customers receive with the service our Partners offer. Now seems the perfect moment to reinforce this message.”

John Lewis says it intends to use the ad concept in future campaigns.

The department store chain revived the 80-year-old “never knowingly undersold” strapline last September in a bid to clarify the positioning to customers through a press campaign.

The John Lewis Partnership reported revenue up 6.5% to £7.4bn for the year ending 30 January and a profit increase of 20.5% to £389.7m.