Morrisons makes staff the stars in Ant and Dec TV ads

The campaign, which introduces the new strapline "More of what matters", sees the 'Britain’s Got Talent' hosts interacting with Morrisons’ specialist employees, such as fishmongers and butcher.

It forms part of plans to raise the profile of its Market Street fresh food offering, which it believes differentiates it from the likes of Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Asda.

In the first TV ad, by DLKW Lowe, Ant and Dec travel with Morrisons’ fishmonger Dan Parr to a fishing port to see how the supermarket sources its products and prove the expertise of its 1,000 trained fishmongers.

The ad, which features the return of Take That’s 'Shine' as a backing track, breaks tonight 7 February on ITV1 during 'Emmerdale'.

A future TV ad will focus on Morrisons butcher Antony Ward, who will introduce Ant and Dec to some traditional British breeds of cattle, and the supermarket plans to showcase several other "skilled workers" in future campaigns.

It forms part of a wider partnership between Morrisons and ITV, including the sponsorship of its primetime shows, 'Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway' and 'Britain’s Got Talent'.

Belinda Youngs, corporate brand marketing director of Morrisons, said: "These adverts showcase more of what matters, our skilled counter staff providing shoppers the best service, fresh products and great Morrisons’ value.

"It also reminds the viewers that they can have their food any way they like it because we have trained specialists who can prepare, make, bake, fillet and cut like only we can."

It marks a U-turn for Morrisons, which dropped its celebrity ambassador Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff last year in favour of a focus on the role of mothers.

However, after a period of poor sales, the supermarket decided to part ways with commercial director Richard Hodgson, with chief executive Dalton Philips raising concerns that its fresh food proposition was being insufficiently communicated.

This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk