Skipton Building Society and Red Brick Road put fairness and fun in finance

Skipton Building Society and Red Brick Road are levelling the finance playing field with humour in a new campaign as part of the brand’s ‘Founded on Fairness’ platform.

The iteration is part of the brand’s repositioning and renewed purpose ‘to help more people have a home, save for life ahead and support long-term financial wellbeing’.

The new execution focuses on the difficulties faced by first-time buyers when trying to get onto the property ladder.

A TV spot, made by Red Brick Road and directed by Ric Cantor with Knucklehead, brings to life the struggles of getting on the property ladder through the metaphor of an uphill Rickshaw ride. 

The spot shows a young couple on a Rickshaw, driven by character actor Simon Farnaby, known for his performances in Ghosts and The Detectorists. Farnaby plays an anti-hero, bringing to life the unfairness of the finance sector. He drives the Rickshaw letting his passengers put in all the work, pedalling uphill themselves even though they have paid for the ride. 

The steep hill is the challenge that many struggle with when trying to get onto the property ladder when attempting to buy their first home. Skipton brings to life the unfairness in the current process and points first-time buyers towards the building society with its range of innovative mortgage products and helpful approach. The cheeky metaphor shows that Skipton is challenging the sector to give consumers a fair ride.

“We know that people want financial institutions that act with integrity, and the Skipton differences: being member owned, putting people first, and demonstrating fairness in products, policies and services are more motivating than ever. Fairness is a founding principle for the business. So, this campaign has always felt the right way to bring that to life,” explains Steven Glass, Head of Brand at Skipton Building Society.

The spot will run across linear, video on demand and social video on demand and is supported by a national Cinema and social campaign. The campaign aims to reach a wide audience with Skipton’s commitment to fairness and is also aimed at the younger segment of the market, particularly those who are trying to buy their first homes.

“Our job has been to make sure that message shows up in the right moments and environments, reaching people who are feeling locked out of the system and need to hear that a fairer alternative exists. As our first campaign together, it’s set a strong foundation for how Skipton’s purpose can be brought to life consistently and credibly through every touchpoint,” added Leigh Herbert, MD of Republic of Media.

Pointing out injustices in the sector with humour, Skipton demonstrates its commitment to fairness to build trust with new audiences.