In Germany, Lidl has had a playful dig at its rivals in a new Halloween commercial, in which a ‘price exorcist’ visits a home to rid the family of high-cost products.
In a novel twist on the 1973 horror The Exorcist, a worried wife seeks help for her husband, who’s possessed – not by demons, but by the terror of ‘demonically high prices’.
At one point, in a not-so-subtle nod to rival Edeka, the camera pans to a room packed with bags that feature a logo not unlike that of the German market leader.
The ‘price exorcist’, named Dr Günstig, then commences reading from the Lidl catalogue, before calling on the ‘shrine’ of the Lidl Plus app to banish high prices from the household.
As a description of the ad puts it on YouTube, ‘Dr. Günstig comes to the rescue! The price ghosts have taken up residence – high time for Lidl therapy. We’ll drive away the ghosts with our cheap Halloween offers. Grab your favourites now.’
Since being launched on 24 October, the ad has already racked up 2.2 million views. You can view it here.
Store Development
Last week, Lidl announced that it plans to advance sustainable construction with its new Building Description Standard (BBS 2024), which is set to become the blueprint for all future Lidl store developments in Germany.
This new approach has earned Lidl the prestigious Gold Basic Certification (pre-certificate) under the 2023 guidelines of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB).
It marks the first time that a food retailer has received this level of certification, Lidl noted.
