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This year, the John Lewis Christmas campaign followed the same Thoughtful Gifting strategy as years gone by. However, Monty the Penguin represents a new era of modern retail marketing. With objectives that focused heavily on integration and activation extending beyond a joined up TV, print and online campaign, and into new realms of in-store theatre, merchandising, CSR activations, global technological firsts, and social media marketing where even the characters in the campaign had their own voices and profiles. Customers become wrapped up in a story, immersed in a world of activation, and engaged with the characters and the message with new depth and feeling.

The campaign was teased in DOOH, Channel 4 idents and in social to key influencers. It was unbranded but included the campaign hashtag, #MontyThePenguin. This lead the conversation and generated national buzz.

The two minute film was launched in social first, then aired on TV in a solus advert break on Channel 4 during Gogglebox.

Each of the 41 John Lewis stores were equipped a with Monty’s Den, which included Monty’s Goggles - our first truly immersive Christmas campaign experience that allowed users to explore our 3D world in which our characters live.

Monty’s Magical Toy Machine, allowed children to scan, dance and play with their favourite toys on screen in the Oxford Street flagship store, brought to life the advert joy of the imagination of children.

All of this alongside the campaign also included the story book, the app, merchandise and the online activation. Monty featured in the window displays and in the magical garden on the Oxford Street store roof.

The campaign was the hot topic on everyone’s lips. People were interacting with all facets of the campaign story, and hundreds of parodies started to appear online, in print, and on TV.

The campaign took the nation by storm. Trending in the UK after half an hour and globally within the hour.

Viewed 29 million times across YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Over 6 million before the advert aired on TV and shared 288,000 times.

Coverage was unavoidable on TV, press, online and in social. Parodies appeared across the internet, and was the hot topic of popular TV panel and chat shows. Toys sold out within three days and engagement remained strong online through the course of the Christmas period, with consumers falling in love with the characters and their online story.

The 2 minute film was viewed over 29 million times online.

#MontyThePenguin was trending in the UK half an hour after the social launch and globally within the hour.

It was shared 288,000 times.

Monty had 42,000 twitter followers.

Soft toys of Monty & Mabel sold out in 3 days.

Overall merchandise sales from the campaign paid for the ad.

John Lewis Christmas sales were 5.8% up on 2013 – itself a record year.

John Lewis experienced a record sales week, taking £175m for the first time, and overall outperformed the BRC by 4%.

Econometrics has proved a profit ROI of £7.44 on every pound spent on marketing. The highest return of any John Lewis Christmas campaign.

In this communication we created two characters, Monty and his lost love Mabel. Launching as a 2 minute film in social and before airing on TV.

However, the characters lived beyond just the television advert. Their story could be followed on Twitter, Facebook, in a bespoke story book and in a continuously updating app.

There was a plethora of branded elements... a range of soft toys and merchandise available in store and online. Consumers could immerse themselves in a 3D digital animated world, through a media first partnership with Google cardboard, Monty’s Goggles which could be found in Monty’s Den in all 41 John Lewis store.

In Oxford Street the pioneering digital technology was taken a step further with ‘Monty’s Magical Toy Machine’. In partnership with Microsoft, children’s toys were digitally scanned and brought to life on screen, so they could dance and sing together with their favourite cuddly toy.