Art Direction & Creative Strategy
Everyday,
Everything.
This DHL Christmas Retail campaign concept visualises stories where DHL Express enables the tangible connection between loved ones in different parts of the world, but it's the emotional connection between shipper and receiver that really matters.
Each still shows a frozen moment in time capturing the protagonist receiving something meaningful which was delivered to someone meaningful. To DHL Express the delivery was everyday stuff, but to your recipient the contents means everything.
01. Why Retail
Matters
Retail is a key way DHL's brand and services are visible and accessible to individual consumers. The service is truly omnichannel, with customers having the choice of walking into stores, clicking onto their websites or calling to book a collection.
It's one of DHL's most profitable channels and acts as an entry point for SMEs on their journey to becoming full account customers. I developed a campaign toolkit that enables DHL's Retail Marketing teams to promote the DHL Express offering consistently all across Europe.
With Christmas approaching, a time when many people send sentimental gifts via DHL Express, the campaign was designed to be emotive, focusing on who our customers are shipping to, and the emotional impact the delivery has on them.
03. Strategic
Solution
The solution was a story-led retail ecosystem, not a single campaign execution.
Key strategic moves:
- ·Human-first storytelling using intimate, domestic moments
- ·Minimal branding to allow emotion to lead
- ·Clear, legible last-send information to remove friction
- ·Consistent rollout across physical, digital, and partner channels
Each visual showed someone meaningful receiving something meaningful, shifting focus from the parcel to the person.
04. Channel Strategy
& Execution
Rather than flooding channels, the campaign focused on contextual relevance.
Key channel moves:
- ·Broadcast Network Screens at The O2, high dwell-time emotionally primed environments. 12 × 10s loops per hour, Networks 1–3
- ·O2 Website Homepage Takeover, reaching millions already in discovery mode
- ·Social & Email: tactical reminders paired with reassurance and clear CTAs
- ·Retail & Service Points: posters and strut cards placed at the exact moment of intent
This ensured the message followed the customer from emotion → action → fulfilment.
05. Results
& Impact
The campaign delivered both scale and engagement:
The campaign ran across broadcast, web, email and social. Two placements not shown in the results: the O2 homepage, at 144,210 impressions and above average for the slot, and Facebook, at 304,666 reached.
06. The Bigger
Picture
This work formed part of a wider EU Q4 Retail Toolkit, enabling localisation and scale across multiple European markets while preserving emotional consistency.
It demonstrated how large-scale logistics brands can win at retail by: leading with emotion, simplifying complexity and respecting the human moments behind every transaction.
The DHL x The O2 Christmas Campaign didn't just promote shipping deadlines, it reframed what delivery means at Christmas. It positioned DHL Express not as a service you use when you're rushed, but as the brand you trust when it truly matters.
Because sometimes, getting it there isn't the goal. Getting it right is.
The
Results
A concept is easy to protect in one market. The job here was to keep it intact across more than thirty.
The toolkit gave every team the means to localise and extend the campaign in their own language and their own retail calendar, without any of them having to reinvent the idea to do it.
Concept:Fluunt & Friction
Design:Fluunt & Friction
Animation:Fluunt & Friction
Client:DHL Express
Want results like this?
10.9M+
Impressions across The O2’s broadcast screens
52%
Email open rate, against a 45.7% average
502K
Instagram story impressions