Why Marks & Spencer is rethinking festive marketing for the TikTok era

Marks & Spencer is unwrapping a new kind of Christmas this year - one designed not around a single cinematic TV ad, but rather it's taking a more "modern and relevant  approach".

The retailer’s Fashion, Home & Beauty division has ditched the traditional "one big hero ad" format in favour of a phased, "product-first" campaign that mirrors customers’ real-life festive habits - from early gifting sprees to party season prep and post-Christmas wardrobe refreshes.

Instead of a single moment dominating the conversation, M&S will drip-feed multiple mini-films and social-first content drops throughout the season. The idea: to stay in-step with customers as their priorities shift week by week, and to showcase the full breadth of the brand’s fashion, beauty and home offer in more relevant, digestible ways.

Sharry Cramond, M&S’s Fashion, Home & Beauty Marketing Director, said: "We realised that we were considering Christmas shopping missions too  holistically.

"Customers don’t think or shop in that way – everything all at once. Our research showed us that customers tend to shop in phases across the period, starting with gifting and then moving on to parties and then hosting at home."

The campaign unfolds across three key festive "shopping missions" each anchored by short, stylised films and a wave of tailored content across social, digital, print and outdoor:

Give the Gift (launching 23 October): Two 15-second clips open with a glam, music video-style moment of someone enjoying their M&S gift, before cutting back to the familiar chaos of Christmas morning.

Host with the Most (6 November): A pair of glossy party scenes showcasing M&S occasionwear, décor and tableware, celebrating those who go all out for festive hosting.

Get Your Christmas On (4 December): A fun, fashion-forward film featuring two families crossing paths on their Christmas Day walk, dressed head-to-toe in M&S winter style.

To amplify the campaign's reach, M&S is partnering with a curated mix of ambassadors, including Hattie Bourn, Melvin Odoom, Vernon Kay, Vogue Williams, Ian Wright and Olly Murs, alongside its homegrown M&S Insiders network.

The British retail giant is also doubling down on digital investment, with YouTube spend up 67% and digital display and video budgets up 232% throughout October, November and December.

The strategy signals a broader evolution in how M&S approaches marketing. The result is a multi-layered campaign designed for scrolling as much as for streaming.