Four Tesco customers were given an extra helping of Christmas cheer after being reunited with long lost friends and relatives by the retailer.
A quarter of Brits will celebrate Christmas virtually this year, as families struggle to come together to celebrate the festivities new research from Tesco has revealed.
The new trend will see a third of Brit’s using video calling to open Christmas presents with one another. One in five will sit down to eat the traditional festive feast virtually, while another 16 per cent will play traditional games such as charades or Monopoly on the big day. Skype is the most used (76%) video calling service followed by Apple’s FaceTime (41%).
It seems the trend of virtual Christmases is here to stay with one in five (19%) people stating the cost of travel prevents them from spending the big day with family. So this year, to help four families who wouldn’t normally spend Christmas together, Tesco played Santa’s little helper and worked its magic to fly family members from as far as Australia in secret, over to the UK, to surprise and delight their unsuspecting relatives.
Michelle McEttrick, Group Brand Director at Tesco commented:
“Our research found that half of us will be missing a loved one this Christmas so we wanted to help bring families together, no matter where in the world they were from”.
The first of two new TV adverts showcasing the reunions will air on 22nd December on ITV and features Brenda Hillaby who, after working for Tesco for nearly 25 years, was nominated by her store in Hull to be reunited with her son who lives in Australia. Brenda saves every spare penny she has to try and visit him with the two nephews he has never met but has never managed to do it, in the seven years he has been away. Luckily, they always manage to send each other presents with a delivery service like startrack courier, but this year will be extra special!
The second ad airing on 23rd December also on ITV features Theresa, an 88-year-old grandmother. For the ultimate Christmas wish, Tesco flew her daughter and granddaughters from Australia to the UK. They then paid Theresa a surprise visit by sneaking into her weekly Tesco delivery which her daughter organises for her every week in Australia!
Christmas fans can also visit Tesco.com/Christmas or go on to the Tesco Facebook page for a chance to see how two other families were reunited with their loved ones for a magical Christmas complete with fantastic festive food courtesy of Tesco.
