Why John Lewis Is Producing A Vodcast Series

The average person buys 32 gifts a year. A thought-provoking stat on reflection, considering the numbers of birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas lists in a calendar year; John Lewis is a brand that has dominated gifting across traditional gifting seasons, but is determined to show its audience that gifting really is all-year-round. 

It’s latest campaign, Gift List, sees the introduction of an original entertainment series, in the form of its first-ever social-first vodcast series, hosted by broadcaster and presenter Angela Scanlon.

The aim? To lift the lid on the nation’s most treasured celebrities’ gifting habits, inspiring audiences with personal stories, funny anecdotes, embarrassing ‘mis-gifts’, heartwarming emotional stories, and hilarious name-drops.

Made by Saatchi & Saatchi, the work also debuts from The Box Studio – a state-of-the-art content studio built specifically in John Lewis’ flagship Oxford Street store; “We have one of the best creator playgrounds permanently at our disposal,” says Caroline Paris, head of creative, at Saatchi & Saatchi. 

Paris discusses how to creatively approach a content series as opposed to a 90-second spot, the production process, and the benefits of social-first content. 

Why was a social-first vodcast the right format for John Lewis rather than a traditional campaign film? And why now?

For John Lewis, gifting isn't a once-a-year conversation, it’s a year round frequency driving strategy - and so creating an always-on content series, allows us to be front of mind beyond Christmas. 

The content combines a trusted host in Angela Scanlon, a genuinely ownable setting in The Box Studio (which we build inside the John Lewis flagship, Oxford St), and the niche, but highly entertaining subject of celeb gifting to create content consumers actually want to engage with, and connect with the brand.

What was the brief for the campaign?

The brief was simple, really: keep John Lewis front of mind for gifting all year round.

And that doesn’t just mean the gifts that get wrapped up with a bow for others. The gift of a silent washing machine, a quality jacket that goes with everything or a set of essentially thin-stemmed wine glasses are all gifts to yourself. And so, we wanted to celebrate all of that by building something that will generate conversations that are grounded in everything John Lewis can offer. 

What changes creatively when you're making something that needs to work as a full 20-minute episode and a range of social cutdowns, as opposed to 90 seconds?

The biggest shift is moving from a campaign mindset to an editorial one which involves in depth research and preparation, that we then hand to our host, the brilliant Angela Scanlon, who takes the mantle in guiding an interesting conversation. She really has to self-direct and produce in the moment (which she is an expert in and is why she has just been named host of BBC Radio 2 Drive Time!) as opposed to having scripts and pre-prod approvals. So the shift in approach for us creatively becomes about letting go and creating the right conditions for great conversations to thrive.

This also means the right guest selection is absolutely critical. You're not casting people because they are a traditional brand fit, you're looking for people who are entertaining storytellers, who are funny, engaging and reflective.

From a production perspective, creating an always-on format means we also have to be efficient. One hour with a guest, can generate a full episode, multiple social clips, reactive content, behind-the-scenes moments, edits, and collaborations. Every filming day we’re capturing an entire content ecosystem with multiple guests, and this feels closer to entertainment than a traditional advertising production model.

At what point did you realise this shouldn't be another piece of branded social content, but an actual entertainment format?

To succeed in a social-first world, is to create content viewers want to spend time with. Doing that for a brand can be tough, unless you truly lean into entertainment. The space of ‘gifting’ feels unique and ownable to the John Lewis brand and what they offer. But in reality, the content focuses on personal relationships, emotional stories and celebrity taste - which will always ignite the innate curiosity of the nation. The marriage of these two things felt like an authentic place for the brand to exist.

There are ‘shoppable’ curations that come out of each episode, closing the editorial loop and enabling viewers to shop like the celebs they love. But Gift List is an entertainment first-show and that is how and why the content is being shared and we bring viewers in.  

Why make the choice to roll this out as a series? Were there any insights to suggest the material needed more time?

Repeatable format long-form takes time to build viewer loyalty over multiple episodes. And the series really is about gaining a different perspective on the same topic from a number of guests, who all have their own cultural relevance at different times of year. 

But that's not to say we won’t evolve. We're constantly looking at the YouTube and Spotify performance to understand which stories resonate, and what audiences engage with which is essential to Gift List’s success longer term. 

What makes a Gift List unmistakably John Lewis rather than a celebrity interview show with a John Lewis logo on it?

Gifting is a space which John Lewis already owns. We wanted to lean into this, and build the store itself into the stories. 

We ensured Gift List was embedded in John Lewis’ DNA, by rooting the filming of each episode in our newly created content creation space, The Box Studio at John Lewis’ flagship store on Oxford St. 

During the episodes, Angela takes guests out into the store itself, using products, departments and experiences as prompts for stories and interactions so the public can see it happening, alongside a fireside chat which immediately makes it feel different from a traditional studio conversation. Louis Theroux's style makeover is a very entertaining example of this - it brought the magic of John Lewis to the grid, through social clipping of an iconic scene created purely in store.

The Box Studio – tell us about that. What did having a permanent content studio inside John Lewis change about the creative process?

The beauty of filming content in The Box Studio, which we built inside the John Lewis flagship, is that we have one of the best creator playgrounds permanently at our disposal. And because it is located at the heart of the Oxford St store, the space is surrounded by beauty, fashion, home, technology inspiration - and invaluable experts with the John Lewis Partners on hand. 

The Box Studio allows the brand to create distinctive brand assets across all channels, and take creator partnerships to the next level. Not only does it give us consistency, but efficiency, agility and speed when it comes to inspiring content creation. 

What can you make in The Box Studio that you perhaps couldn't make through a traditional agency production model?

The Box Studio is a unique solution for John Lewis that ultimately creates agility. 

A creator can take a product from the shop floor, instantly bring it into the studio, and create content in a space that will over time, be recognised as John Lewis, in minutes. That shortened time frame means we can respond to cultural moments, seasonal opportunities and emerging trends much faster than ever before. That’s invaluable when cultural moments emerge and change at the pace they do.

How do you balance recognisable names with guests who actually have interesting stories to tell?

It's always the story first. Our key criteria is for Gift List guests to be great, entertaining storytellers. The goal is for them to open up to share stories that are unique to John Lewis content and interesting to our viewers. 

Do you think audiences are more receptive to brands selling through entertainment than through conventional advertising now?

I don't think it's a case of entertainment replacing advertising, there are roles for both at the right times and in the right places. 

Equally, Gift List and the Box Studio are not an alternative to advertising. They play a different role in the way people consume media. Which is an essential strategic expansion for most brands who want to remain relevant, given the shift in where everyone’s time is being spent.