In 2018, one of the toughest years yet for the British high street, we set out to cement John Lewis & Partners position as the home of thoughtful gifts once again. We told a story about the power of the perfect gift and how it changed the course of a little boy's life. That little boy just happened to be Elton John. Set to the iconic 'Your Song', the film works backwards chronologically right up to the moment on Christmas morning when he receives the special gift that changes his life.

The Boy & The Piano tells the story about the power of the perfect gift and how it changed the course of a little boy’s life. That little boy just happened to be Elton John. Set to the iconic ‘Your Song’, the film works backwards chronologically right up to the moment on Christmas morning when he receives the special gift that changes his life.

John Lewis & Partners' strategic bedrock is the home of 'Thoughtful Gifting.' This strategy is underpinned by three key insights:

Business insight

John Lewis & Partners has more expertly designed, sourced and curated products and services than any other high-street retailer. No matter who you are buying for, you’ll find the perfect gift for them there.

Brand insight

John Lewis & Partners is a composed, understated brand. The shopping experience is calm and unruffled. At a frenzied time of glitz, promotion and cliche´, John Lewis & Partners is more considered.

Customer Insight

John Lewis & Partners appeals to an affluent, educated customer base, who buy well. When it comes to gift buying, they think more carefully and choose more thoughtfully. We call these people “Thoughtful Gifters”.

By creating engaging, interactive experiences we drove footfall in to store and overall sales for the period increased by 2.5% YoY.

The campaign was teased on the 14th November through a unique partnership with ITV with five famous programmes (including Coronation Street) changing their theme tunes to bespoke piano versions. On launch day, Elton John also sharing it on his own social channels. The 140” ad was live on TV for 4 days from launch, with the 90”, 60” and 30” cutdowns airing throughout November. The 90” ad also ran in cinema next to a trailer for ‘Rocketman’, a biopic of Elton’s life. Eight 10” product ads aired in December for brands like Apple, Microsoft and Lego each with it’s own Elton John track. In stores throughout the country, customers could play Elton sheet music on pianos. The flagship store had an immersive ad space experience with sets from the film, Elton themed installation on every floor and a light show to 'Step into Christmas'.

The ad received over 50m views on social (+62% YoY), with 16m of those generated by organic shares from celebrities like James Corden and Rob Lowe. We were No.1 on YouTube’s Christmas ad leaderboard. Brand salience and emotional affinity increased and ad awareness and word of mouth rocketed thanks to Elton’s star quality (+21% upon launch). In a tough retail climate, gross sales came in at £1.16 billion, up 2.5 per cent YoY.