Iceland boss deserves praise for scrapping Christmas advert

It would be easy to label Iceland boss Richard Walker as Scrooge after the chain scrapped its Christmas TV campaign. But going against the pack takes bravery and we should be saluting his courage, writes Chris Blackhurst

John Lewis deliberately sets out to surprise with its Christmas ads... hence this year’s production centred on, of all things, a mischievous Venus flytrap (PA)

News that Iceland Foods is not producing a Christmas television advert this year prompted the inevitable outcry of “bah humbug!”

The budget chain’s executive chair, Richard Walker, is Scrooge. More so when Walker and his family, who own the group in its entirety, are worth hundreds of millions of pounds. Surely, they could themselves pay for a spot of seasonal cheer, inducing a warm glow in viewers. Seemingly not.

Except it’s not that simple. Here’s Walker: “As a business we were faced with a decision. Do we spend millions creating and sharing a TV advert or do we invest the money supporting our customers during the cost of living crisis?