Halfords has unveiled ‘For All Wheelkind’, a new brand proposition and major integrated campaign created by Dentsu Creative UK, designed to reflect the breadth of the Halfords business today and its role in keeping Britain moving.
Halfords has evolved significantly beyond its heritage as a traditional cycling and motoring retailer. Today, the business supports millions of customers across its retail stores, garages, mobile services and website, combining products with an increasingly broad range of motoring and cycling expertise, services and solutions.
The new ‘For All Wheelkind’ platform brings that expanded offer together under one brand idea, reflecting Halfords’ unique position, the sheer breadth of its offer, its range of expert services and, importantly, the people who deliver them. At its heart is a simple idea: however, people feel about their wheels, and however much or little they know about looking after them, Halfords is there to help keep them moving.
That means supporting the enthusiasts who want to do things themselves, but increasingly also those who simply want a problem solved for them. For Halfords’ growing ‘do it for me’ customers, the brand’s role is not just to sell the right product, but to provide the expertise, services and solutions to get the job done – whether in store, at a garage, online or through its mobile services.
‘For All Wheelkind’ shifts the focus from what Halfords sells to the people it serves and the many different ways cars, bikes and wheels are part of everyday British life. The idea is brought to life through a fully integrated campaign, reaching customers through broadcast and digital media, OOH, social and influencer content, as well as across Halfords’ stores and garages. Extending the idea into entertainment, Halfords will also sponsor High-Stakes Drama on ITVX an apt home for a brand that knows that when the stakes suddenly feel high for drivers and riders, having the right expertise and support can make all the difference. Together, the activity creates one consistent brand idea wherever customers encounter Halfords.
Through a cast of recognisable characters, Halfords’ customers and their relationships with their wheels are brought to life against familiar British roads, driveways, garages and everyday journeys. Their different needs, behaviours and personalities are portrayed with warmth and humour, celebrating the breadth of ‘Wheelkind’.
Across OOH, social and digital, their stories continue, showing how Halfords’ products, services, colleagues and expertise help keep them moving.
The new proposition represents one of Halfords’ biggest brand transformations in years, bringing the breadth of the Halfords business across retail, garages, mobile services and digital under a single umbrella. It “creates a bold new tone for the brand and helps move Halfords from a product-led conversation towards a broader story about the role it plays in customers’ everyday lives, not simply selling what they need, but helping solve the problems that keep them and their wheels moving.”
This is reinforced with the message of Halfords’ two-year guarantee on its products and services, giving customers added reassurance that whatever their relationship with their wheels, Halfords is there to help keep them moving.
Dan Daly, group marketing director at Halfords, said: “Halfords has evolved significantly, and this new platform reflects both the breadth of the business we are today and the opportunity we see ahead. For All Wheelkind allows us to move beyond a category-led conversation about products and services and build a more relevant, emotional relationship with the people who rely on us every day.
“It puts customers and colleagues at the centre, whether they are confident enthusiasts or would much rather leave things to an expert. Increasingly, our role is about providing customers with a solution – combining the right products with the expertise and services to solve the problem for them – and this platform gives us a clear way to communicate that across the whole Halfords offer.
“Most importantly, it gives us a distinctive long-term platform that can help broaden consideration of the brand, reinforce the role of our expertise and show how Halfords helps keep people’s lives moving.”
The campaign deliberately moves away from category conventions centred on products, price and mechanical expertise alone. Instead, it uses recognisable human behaviour and humour across every channel to make Halfords’ expertise and solutions feel more accessible, while building a bigger emotional role for the brand.
Matt Searle, executive creative director at Dentsu Creative UK, added: “There’s no such thing as a typical Halfords customer. Some people love their wheels, some barely think about them until something goes wrong, and some hear one strange noise and immediately fear financial ruin. That was the fun of this idea. ‘For All Wheelkind’ gives us a way to celebrate all of those people while reminding them that Halfords is there for all of it. It’s warm, properly populist and gives us a big creative platform we can have a lot of fun with.”
