Last year, J.Walter Thompson Amsterdam and Plus Supermarkets created quite a stir with their Christmas family narrative that confronted the difficulties divorce can cause during holiday seasons. But this year? Well, this year’s deals with death. And it does so in such a surprising way your heart will get caught unawares and, if you are at all human, you will blubber.

You will also remember the ad as the most beautiful Christmas story you remember seeing. OK, that’s a personal opinion, but watch the ad before you disagree.

Bas Korsten, creative partner at J. Walter Thompson Amsterdam, noted, “All families have their tales and their traditions. And Christmas is an especially poignant time of the year to explore these stories. In this particular case, the hero of our narrative for PLUS Supermarkets is that old recipe book – connecting the generations and ensuring that the family recipes will never get lost or forgotten.”

Esmée Blom, Communication Manager at PLUS Supermarkets, added, “We are really proud of this new campaign. We strongly believe in the strategy we developed for PLUS some three years ago and the way in which we are executing it. We are aiming for the same success as last year’s campaign, which in terms of market share was our best Christmas ever.”

The campaign is underscored with a new version of Robbie Williams’ hit She’s the One, which was originally released twenty years ago this December. The track is performed by British recording artist, Frances, who was nominated for a BRIT in Critic’s Choice 2016. It was produced by Amp.Amsterdam.

Here is last year’s Christmas story:

JWT Amsterdam: Is this the bravest Christmas ad of the year?

Credits:

Agency: J. Walter Thompson Amsterdam

Creative Partner: Bas Korsten

Creative Leads: Chris Sant & Dieuwer Bulthuis

Business Lead: Budi Gonzalez de Chaves

Senior concept producer: Charlene Thomas

Screen producer: Kiek Beljaars

Production Company: Pink Rabbit

Director: Ismael ten Heuvel

DOP: Martijn van Broekhuizen

Executive Producers: Mireille Lampe & Monique van Beckhoven

Producer: Floor Schroeijers

Editing: Martin Heijgelaar  @ MRTN

Online & Special effects: Justin Baker & Daniël van der Kaaden @ Captcha!

Grading: Barry Clarke

Music: Amp.Amsterdam

Song: Frances – She’s The One (original song by Robbie Williams)

Music Supervision: Bart van Liemt & Jarl Hector

Sound: Jacco Lenstra @ Studio Alfred Klaassen

Client: PLUS Supermarkets

Manager Brand & Communication: Okke Wiarda

Marketing Manager: Esmée Blom

Campaign Manager: Marieke Lazeroms