Department store launches festive campaign early with 90s club hit and family-themed story
John Lewis has officially kicked off the countdown to Christmas with its 2025 festive advert, set to the beat of 1990s club classic Where Love Lives by Alison Limerick. The department store chain is banking on nostalgia and emotion to connect with customers in a year when many households are tightening their budgets.
The ad, which launches 10 days earlier than last year’s, tells the story of a middle-aged dad who rediscovers his youthful spirit through music. After receiving a vinyl record from his teenage son, he is transported back to his clubbing days, dancing joyfully under neon lights before the scene shifts back to his living room, where the two share an emotional hug.
Rosie Hanley, brand director for John Lewis, said the campaign aims to resonate with families and tap into shared memories. “This year we wanted to celebrate connection — the idea that love, music and nostalgia can bring people together,” she said. “We know that our customers are looking for meaningful experiences, especially at Christmas.”
The advert, created by Saatchi & Saatchi for the second year in a row, marks a continued shift away from the animated characters and whimsical stories that once defined the John Lewis Christmas tradition. Gone are the penguins, boxers and dragons of past campaigns; in their place is a more grounded, human focus on relationships and shared moments.
The 1990s dance anthem Where Love Lives provides the emotional core of the ad. The track begins in its original upbeat form before transitioning into a slower, soulful version by British singer and producer Labrinth, whose reinterpretation underscores the story’s themes of memory and connection.
To accompany the campaign, John Lewis will release a limited-edition vinyl record featuring both versions of the song. Priced at £14.99, it will be available through the Rough Trade record shop sections in John Lewis stores and on the retailer’s app, with profits supporting the company’s Building Happier Futures programme, which helps people who have grown up in care.
John Lewis’s Christmas campaign has become an annual cultural moment in the UK, marking the unofficial start of the festive season for many viewers. Previous adverts have featured reworked versions of well-known songs including Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths and Together in Electric Dreams by Philip Oakey and Giorgio Moroder. Last year’s campaign featured Richard Ashcroft performing Sonnet.
This year’s advert also reflects a broader trend among retailers launching their festive campaigns earlier than ever. John Lewis opened its in-store Christmas shop in September and made products available online as early as August to cater to customers spreading their spending across multiple paydays.
“With people planning ahead and managing costs, we wanted to make sure we were ready for those early shoppers,” Hanley explained. “We’ve seen more families buying gradually rather than leaving it all to December.”
The new ad will debut to loyalty scheme members on Tuesday morning before airing on YouTube and later during The Great British Bake Off final on Channel 4. It will then roll out across TV, cinema and social media platforms throughout November.
John Lewis’s early launch follows other major retailers joining the seasonal advertising race. Sainsbury’s aired its festive spot on Sunday, while Morrisons’ Christmas campaign premieres on Tuesday. Marks & Spencer, meanwhile, has opted for several product-led ads rather than a single “hero” film, alongside a fifth consecutive year featuring Dawn French in its food campaign.
The broader advertising industry expects festive spending to increase this year, despite economic pressures. According to the Advertising Association and WARC, UK Christmas ad spend is projected to rise 7.3% to £12bn, with digital and video-on-demand seeing the strongest growth.
For John Lewis, the message this year is simple — connection over consumerism. As the soundtrack fades and the final frame settles on a father and son embracing under the glow of fairy lights, the retailer hopes to remind audiences that, in a difficult year, love and nostalgia remain where the magic truly lives