Co-op and ITV are launching a live advert tonight (Friday 26 November) which will showcase the power of communities through Co-op’s partnership with environmental charity Hubbub.
The partnership brokered by Carat UK and produced by ITN Productions, will be broadcast in the centre break of Coronation Street. The live 120” ad will feature Dermot O'Leary and Big Zuu and centre around a Community Fridge at the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association Community Centre in Feltham.
The Community Fridge network aims to bring people together to eat, connect, learn new skills and reduce food waste.
This Christmas, Co-op is committing to doubling Hubbub’s network of fridges, by funding a further 250, which will save a total of 34 million meals from going to waste annually.
As part of the live ad, one of the Feltham volunteers will be teaching Big Zuu and Dermot how to cook her favourite vegetarian curry, showcasing how the community fridge brings people together to learn new skills.
The on-air moment will launch with a bespoke ITV Proudly Presents introduction. A shorter version of the advert will run on both airtime and VOD supported by social, print and out-of-home activations, encouraging the nation to find out more in their local area and make it a Christmas cause to remember.
Ali Jones, Customer and Community Director, Co-op, commented: “Christmas is a great time to shine a spotlight on the things that matter most to us.
Given the past 18 months and the challenges which clearly lie ahead, we wanted to highlight the importance of community in a real, genuine and positive way. Our unique live advert will remind people that whilst not everyone can enjoy the same Christmas this year but that by co-operating we can create a fairer world in the future.”
Mark Trinder, Director of Commercial Sales and Partnerships, ITV, said: “Co-op’s campaign is a real chance to transform lives this Christmas and through working together on this innovative live advertising moment, we’re able to amplify their Community Fridge message and ensure that it reaches communities across the UK through the power of TV.”
Jess Batiste, Client Director, Carat UK, said: “We are extremely excited to be extending our partnership with ITV this Christmas and what better way to do so then by bringing to life this Community Fridge with Big Zuu and Dermot.
Christmas is a magical time of year for many but we want to encourage the nation to find out how they can make a real difference to people within their local communities this Christmas.
We wanted to create a partnership that would land Co-op’s work across communities in an impactful but genuine way and ITV is a great partner to do this for us. We are excited to see this ad break go live.”
Mark Thompson, Commercial Director and Head of Advertising, ITN Productions, said: “We are so proud to be part of Co-op’s fantastic initiative. By capitalising on ITN’s unique ability to deliver LIVE TV broadcast advertising we are able to show real people in real time in a truly authentic and genuine way. This will really help land the message and give a sense of reality to audiences watching. These things are happening right now, in your local communities so sit up, take note and get involved. We're hoping that the advert will bring awareness of the campaign and that together we can build stronger communities, help tackle food poverty and reduce food waste across the UK."
ITV and Co-op already have a long-standing Product Placement commercial partnership with the Co-op store feature on the Coronation Street cobbles since 2018.