Real DIY fails show we 'need experts' in Currys rebrand

British retailer and AMV BBDO used found footage to illustrate its point

Published On
Oct 07, 2021

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In the midst of the U.K.'s Brexit debate a few years ago, pro-Brexit politician Michael Gove famously said that "Britain has had enough of experts." Now a new campaign from British retailer Curry's uses found footage and real-life experiences to show that people really do need experts after all.

The campaign from AMV BBDO is the first to communicate the rebrand of four different retailers, Currys PC World, Dixons Carphone, Carphone Warehouse and Team Knowhow, under the Currys brand. It sets out to highlight the pitfalls of buying tech (whether that's appliances, a phone or a computer) without expertise. Driven by research from the retailer that found 58% of people shopping for expensive and unfamiliar tech products would like to speak to a real-life human expert before they buy, whether that be in-store or online, the campaign aims to contrast Currys' approach with the experience of buying from a "faceless robot retail" platform. 

To illustrate that, director Jack Clough of Hunky Dory, known for the comedy series "People Just Do Nothing," begins with found footage featuring some funny DIY fails, from people's disastrous attempts to install their own bathrooms to terrible home haircuts and dangerous chainsaw waving. “When it comes to tech, forget the fake reviewers, bot-farms and lazy algorithms,” says the voiceover. It then directs viewers to ask the experts at Currys, and shows real-life employees helping customers with their purchases.

“Technology is such an intrinsic part of our lives now that how you buy it matters more than ever before," said Dan Rubel, brand and marketing director at Currys, in a statement. "Our research shows that prior to handing over their hard-earned cash, people want advice about the tech they buy from a real-life human expert, particularly when it comes to those expensive and more complex pieces of kit."

The campaign is further supported by out-of-home creative that again focuses on expertise, playing humorously on specific pieces of tech. For example, one highlights how the brand’s experts even know “which beard trimmers are best for trimming things that aren’t beards.” Billboards will run over 1,200 sites across the U.K.

 

Credits

Date
Oct 07, 2021
Client :
Currys
Agency :
AMV BBDO
Brand & Marketing Director :
Dan Rubel
Head of Brand, Comms & Planning :
Corin Mills
Senior Advertising Manager :
Ernest Osafo
Advertising Manager :
Ciaran Conway
CCO :
Alex Grieve
ECD :
Nadja Lossgott
ECD :
Nicholas Hulley
AV :
Prabs Wignarajah
AV :
Jamie Starbuck
OOH :
Laurens Grainger
OOH :
Alicia Cliffe
Agency Planning Team :
Matt Hardisty
Agency Planning Team :
Alice Aldridge
Agency Account Team :
Alex Bird
Agency Account Team :
Alex Smith
Agency Account Team :
Josh Barnes
Agency Producer/Creative Production Partner :
James Robley
Business Affairs :
Cate Killeen
Project Management :
Paul Glucklich
Project Management :
Martin McGinn
Production Company :
Hunky Dory
Director :
Jack Clough
Production Co. Producer :
Nick Papworth
DOP :
Arran Green
Edit :
Al Sinclair
Post-Production Company :
ETC
Sound Studio :
Wave Studios
Audio Post-production Engineer :
Parv Thind
Media Agency :
Spark Foundry

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Project Type