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A naked size-16 model is the surprise star of the long-awaited

Marks & Spencer branding campaign.

The commercial, by Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe/Y&R, breaks on TV on 8

September and marks the start of a radical about-turn for a client known

for its traditional antipathy to advertising.

The troubled retailer is planning to achieve a constant media presence

in the next four months, including five TV ads, each of which will run

for two to three weeks, and a heavy press and poster exposure. Total

media spend, through Walker Media, will be pounds 9 million between now

and the end of the year.

In the first ad, the model, Amy Davis, is seen stripping off as she runs

up a hill. At the top, naked, she raises her arms exultantly and shouts:

’I’m normal.’ A press and poster ad, also featuring the naked Davis and

the line ’hallelujah!’ accompanies the TV work.

The ads coincide with a new sizing initiative in which M&S has recut its

women’s clothes to accommodate changes in body shapes. They aim to show

that fashion can be accessible to normal women.

In another TV ad, three women are celebrating the end of summer because

a new season means they can buy new winter clothes.

’We are setting out to create a sense that M&S is a constant

advertiser,’ MT Rainey, the joint chief executive of Rainey Kelly/Y&R,

said. ’We are building a long-term trading platform, not a

self-conscious brand positioning. This is about demonstrating an empathy

with customers.’

Alan McWalter, M&S’s marketing director, said: ’It’s credible, real,

confident and right for the brand.’

The ads were art directed by Chris Hodgkiss and written by Pip

Bishop.

They were directed by Tom Vaughan through HLA with the end sequences by

Nick Clement.