Waitrose has released the final instalment of its two-part star-studded festive ‘whodunnit’ Christmas campaign.
The first part of ‘Sweet Suspicion, A Waitrose Mystery’ went live at the start of the month and features Succession actor Matthew Macfadyen, comedian Joe Wilkinson, Sex Education’s Rakhee Thakrar and Dustin Demri-Burns from Slow Horses.
In the conclusive ad, created by Saatchi & Saatchi, viewers are invited to watch the mystery of the missing No.1 Waitrose Red Velvet Bauble Dessert be solved by the detective, played by Macfadyen.
The 60-second film follows the detective as he works to find a motive, switching back to moments on Christmas Day when the culprit could have gotten their hands on the dessert.
We see the detective working out how someone could pull off such a crime before revealing that Steve, played by Demri-Burns, hid the dessert in the gingerbread house – before being caught in the act in the family garden shed enjoying the first bite. Once unveiled, the film ends with the whole family digging into the dessert.
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The upmarket grocer’s campaign has amassed over 150m views across social, TV and digital channels, making part one it’s biggest ever Christmas campaign.
Waitrose customer director Nathan Ansell said: “The last few weeks have been filled with suspicion, guessing and alibis.
“Customers and Partners alike have been getting into the ‘whodunnit’ spirit, from wearing the ad t-shirts in store with their predictions of who the culprit is, we’ve also seen huge engagement on social media polls and I’ve even had customers getting in touch with their own detailed theories and pictures.
“I can’t wait for everyone to find out who did it! So here’s to celebrating with some amazing good food and seeing the surprise or smug looks on everyone’s faces.”
Saatchi & Saatchi chief creative officer Franki Goodwin said: ‘The response to Sweet Suspicion Part 1 has been immense. We’ve imbibed the internet gleefully every day since launch as the whole nation has been speculating.
“It’s been especially fun to watch as all the other brilliant pieces of this campaign have come to life – from the partner T-shirts in stores to the celebrity sleuths, with all of our alibi content being as richly enjoyed as the main ad.”
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