The rebirth of the ‘It’s Not Just’ M&S strapline this week is a bit like the return of the Co-op cloverleaf. It’s obvious: like greeting a long-lost friend.
And the incredible thing about that campaign is not just (here we go again) that it was dropped by M&S as long ago as 2007, but that it only launched in 2004. Yet in those three short years it seared itself on the consciousness of the nation. A great strapline can do that.
It led to parody. And it’s still hard even today for newspapers not to start a headline about M&S without that now well-worn mechanic rearing its head again.
Above all it led to imitation. Morrisons and Aldi in particular have gone down this route.
So it’s taken ownership of it again. But it’s given it a twist.
This is not just an M&S food porn ad. It’s not a food porn ad at all. Yes there are slow-mo’s and the familiar Albatross soundtrack. But there’s no Dervla Kirwan voiceover. There’s no close-ups. No ooze and gush. It’s just everyday folk repeating the strapline in their everyday lives as they dream about yummy food. It democratises premium. Which is the point it’s trying to make, I suppose, but at the same time it leaves me a little disappointed.
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