Here we go then, what a monumental week it has been! There is just one story on everyone’s lips, so let’s get to it.

Greggs and its sexy sausage rolls

Yep, this is the big news story I am leading with. It was the talk of the village pub this week, Nigella Lawson has signed up to front Greggs first ever Christmas advertising campaign.

Pervy dads rejoiced down the Dog n Duck as they talked about their two favourite things, Nigella and a Steak Bake, coming together. Greggs got a mild poke from some of the highbrow broadsheet types for ditching its working class roots, but for me that shows just how out of touch some of these writers are, unlike Greggs, who have their fingers on the pulse of modern Britain. Bottom line, Greggs got hundreds of media write ups from the collaboration, and it takes a lot for mainstream news to leak into my local pub, so it’s extra kudos for that.

If the price is right

It has been a good week in the media for a chunk of retail land. Primark ASDA and Sainsbury’s have all enjoyed large dollops of positive coverage. Primark for a new store format, ASDA for announcing cuts and an enforced return to the office (the city analysts loved this more than its workers) and Sainsbury’s for hopefully leading the way on competitive pricing.

One of the big frustrations for consumers is hearing that supermarkets feel they have no choice but to put prices up because of supplier costs, yet they still announce record profits. Historically, one of the ways that supermarkets maintained their profits was by charging far more for the convenience of using one of their smaller express or local shops.

Sainsburys though, has announced that it will price match German rivals Aldi across their express stores as well as its larger supermarkets. They were a bit vague on what they would price match but, it is a start. If Sainsburys does this, there is a very strong chance that the other big brands will follow suit and this has to be good for consumers.

Great PR Sainsburys, love it.

Budget woes

The budget has been an obvious PR disaster for Labour to put it mildly. The story about a farmer taking his own life because of the fear of the consequences of the new IHT rules puts everything into perspective. It feels like no government has had such a hard start to its reign, and the tide appears to be turning fast, against Kier and his crew. Global markets also appear to be starting to doubt the turnaround plan.

With the announcement this week from Ryanair, Primark and a few of the larger supermarket brands that prices will have to increase as a direct result of the budget, Labour is losing the room. They need some good news and fast, and I fear that maybe their strategists are not quite as attuned to the thoughts of the people as the overlords would have hoped.

Parcs and Recreation

One brand that is attuned to the middle classes is Center Parcs. Every year they get savaged by the media for its school holiday pricing strategy, yet their parks remain full.

Demand has never been higher for the spenny, middle-England, UK holiday of dreams. So the media absolutely loved the news this week that a new resort is coming to the UK, in Scotland, and that it will create over 1,000 jobs.

Center Parcs is living proof that if you create something that delivers strong family memories, people will pay the money regardless of the price or the reputational hits that happen.

Great PR from Center Parcs.

They’re listening

The air fryer has come into our lives, riding the crest of the money and time-saving waves that now guides us all, and they have taken over. This week though, they had their first hit of negative PR, I am guessing funded by the deep fat fryer lobbying arm (I jest).

Apparently, our air fryers are listening to us and (if you pay any attention to the tin-foil-hat-brigade) reporting our conversations back to their overlords in lands far away. I don’t have an air fryer, don’t hate me. If I did, they would most likely hear about the latest teen drama’s of my kids' school lives and my never ending search for just a sliver of cheese from the fridge.

Where do these stories come from? It reminds me of the hatchet job on Samsung TV a few years ago, when we were told that MI5 were using them to listen out for wrong-uns having a chat in their living room. Bad PR for air fryers. It will be interesting to see if their sales now plummet because of the rumours.

Trump

Overall, bad PR for all of America for obvious reasons this week.