Your favorite John Lewis Christmas ads

Nothing marks the start of the Christmas season in the UK better than the first holiday commercial from the retailer John Lewis – but which one was the public’s favorite?

Christmas came early this year in Britain, with John Lewis releasing its holiday commercial, Where Love Lives, on November 4th. The only other time the retailer released its Christmas commercial so early in the year was 2021.

The tear-jerker of an ad, Where Love Lives shows a father and son reconnecting over Alison Limerick’s ’90s dance anthem of the same name, which was re-released as a classic black 12” vinyl to be sold exclusively at John Lewis.

The retailer says that the profits from each record sold will go to charity and the commercial clip had almost 1.3 million views on YouTube at the time of publishing.

It’s too early to say how it will fare compared to 18 commercials that came before it – John Lewis started the Christmas tradition in 2007 – but one online researcher did some digging in the historical data of Google Trends to see which ones had the biggest impact.

According to marketing expert Tom Crewe, these are the top John Lewis Christmas commercials of all time, with the number one generating more than £1 million (over $1.3 million) in Spotify streaming royalties for the singer whose song it featured.

5. Buster the Boxer (2016)

The fifth most popular John Lewis commercial was released in 2016, according to Crewe, who found Google searches for the retailer increased 123% compared to an average thanks to this work that features Buster the Boxer and a bunch of wildlife animals, including London’s famous foxes.

The commercial features a cover of Randy Crawford’s One Day I’ll Fly Away sung by Vaults, which was streamed 4.8 million times on Spotify, bringing the British electronic group an estimated £13,575 in stream royalties.

4. The Man on the Moon (2015)

The 2015 commercial, titled The Man on the Moon, tells another heart-wrenching story of a little girl trying to find a way to send a gift to an elderly man living alone on the Moon to show him that someone, somewhere, is thinking of him.

The searches for this one jumped by 133% compared to average John Lewis searches, while the song featured in it – Norwegian singer Aurora’s cover of Oasis’ Half the World Away – was streamed 195 million times on Spotify, bringing her an estimated £352,635 in royalties.

3. Monty the Penguin (2014)

Next is Monty the Penguin, which led to a 141% spike in searches for John Lewis after it was released in 2014. It tells a story of a little boy and his best best friend, a lovesick penguin named Monty.

Singer Tom Odell covered John Lennon’s Real Love for the commercial, bringing in 65.2 million streams on Spotify and an estimated £182,828 in royalties.

2. The Journey (2012)

The second most impactful John Lewis commercial was released in 2012 and titled The Journey, with searches for the retailer increasing by 146% above the average rate, according to Crewe. The commercial shows a snowman traversing beautiful winter landscapes of rural Britain to find a perfect gift for Mrs. Snowman.

A children’s picture book was released shortly after, while Gabrielle Aplin’s cover of The Power of Love, originally by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, became the first John Lewis song to reach UK Singles Chart number one. It has been streamed 74.6 million times on Spotify, earning an estimated £208,970 in streaming royalties.

1. The Bear and the Hare (2013)

The beautifully animated The Bear and the Hare, done in classic Disney style, tops the list of the most popular John Lewis commercials, with searches jumping by 156% after its release in 2013. Made with 2D animation (no AI in sight at the time), it tells the story of a hibernating bear waking up for Christmas to spend it with his friend, the hare, and other forest animals.

The commercial featured singer Lily Allen’s cover of Keane’s Somewhere Only We Know, which quickly rose to the top of the UK Singles Chart. It currently has 387 million Spotify streams, earning Allen over £1 in royalties. In the “making of” video posted on Allen’s YouTube channel, it has 59 million more views.

Time for a new strategy?

While John Lewis commercials have become a British Christmas staple, Crewe’s analysis also showed that the last time one of the retailer’s ads would result in over 100% search spike when compared to the average was 2017.

“While they still give an enormous boost above the usual search volume for the brand, the lasting impact of the John Lewis advert is significantly lower than it was a decade ago,” said Crewe, who attributes this to the declining impact of television advertising overall.

The fact that some of the most impactful Christmas commercials are a decade or more old signals that John Lewis may need to rethink their approach to advertising during the holiday season.

“A big budget television advert may work and it will generate buzz, but in today’s day and age, social media adverts and catering to a new generation is key for the brand going forward to ensure that they still dominate festive marketing,” Crewe said.

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