"The Grinch"

1 November 2025

90s

Green convert.

According to this Christmas ad for Asda, who can better personify the idea of entering the festive season in an era of perpetual cost-of-living crises than The Grinch? Green supermarket is the obvious port-of-call for Dr Seuss's grumpy anti-hero, as he dreads the impact of all the additional spending, but - as you might expect - he is heartened by the affordability oi their offers.

Asda has seen its market share diminished in =recent years as they've been outflanked on price perception by Aldi and Lidl, while sustaining a reputation for being a cheap option among those who aspire to more salubrious rivals such as Sainsbury's and Waitrose. Christmas provides an opportunity to recalibrate, as some of those who've migrated to the budget supermarkets may be wary of doing the big Christmas shop at a retailer which sells power tools and rubber dinghies in its infamous middle aisle.

Director Dexter Fletcher marshals the action as Asda sets out to reassure the audience with a reminder that they are one of the biggest players in this market, and that means they can be relied upon to provide everything that's needed, without breaking the bank.

The lyrics of the adapted version of 'Let it Snow' sung by The Grinch pound away at this idea with insistence, cleverly contrasting with the showpiece executed by director Fletcher to push the idea of affordable luxury.

Will it move the dial for Asda this Christmas? It's hard to say, but we'd classify it as unlikely. After all, last year's battle for Christmas punters was won by a supermarket whose big TV ad was nothing to write home about... so it's fair to say that other factors are at play.

UK

Supermarkets