The ads, which break on Sept. 3, come with the strapline, “Meet Britain’s Leading Ladies” and show the women against four quintessentially British backdrops. For example, a selection of coats is shown off by 10 of the campaign stars on a boat on the Thames, with Tower Bridge in the background, while Elson cuddles a lamb in a bucolic scene, surrounded by seven co-models for M&S’ Per Una collection.
Other lesser-known women appearing in the adverts include Helen Allen, voted "nurse of the year" by the British Journal of Nursing in 2011; Jasmine Whitbread, chief executive of Save the Children International; and burns survivor Katie Piper.
“We wanted this campaign to signal a new and confident tone of voice,” Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, executive director marketing and business development at M&S, said in a statement. “Annie was the perfect choice to shoot a campaign of this magnitude. Her unmistakable, signature style, with its truly dramatic aesthetic was exactly what we needed to communicate the essence of the campaign and of the new M&S. Annie’s photography has become synonymous with defining key moments in the history of brands over the years and, as such, we feel that this campaign is the ideal way to illustrate M&S’ move into a new era.”
As part of chief executive Marc Bolland’s strategic plan for the retailer, M&S has been trying to revive its flagging apparel sales with a new design team in place led by Frances Russell, director of women’s wear. A new direction for the collections was revealed to press and investors in May, with mixed reactions.