The retailer – evidently regarded by some as the posh place to shop – put a brave face on its apparently less-than highly successful social media campaign. It tweeted this week: “Thanks for all the genuine and funny #waitrosereasons tweets. We always like to hear what you think and enjoyed reading most of them.”
Here's a selection of the best tweets.
Inkognito: “I shop at Waitrose because Tesco doesn't stock unicorn food.”
Liza: “I like to shop at Waitrose because they have rotisserie swan.”
Katie: “I also shop at Waitrose because I was once in the Holloway Rd branch and heard a dad say ‘Put the papaya down, Orlando!’"
Katie: “I shop at Waitrose because it makes me feel important and I absolutely detest being surrounded by poor people.”
Herbkim: “Because every 100th bag of Waitrose salad comes with a cute frog inside.”
Paul Parry: “I shop at Waitrose because when the economy finally breaks down and dies, those little green tokens will serve as currency.”
Rob Manuel: "I shop at Waitrose because I got a lifetime ban from M&S after doing something obscene to a Percy Pig.”
Alistair Coleman: “I shop at Waitrose because ... 'you say ‘10 items or fewer’ not ’10 items or less’, which is important.”
J Courntenay Grimwood: “I shop at Waitrose because the smoked unicorn at M&S uses artificial colouring.”
Rys Wynne: “ASDA Value peacock feed isn't as nice.”
Barnaby Walter: "I shop at Waitrose as Tabitha and Tarquin only eat phoenix eggs that have been collected by wizzards who share their values."
Polly Courtney: "I shop at Waitrose because Clarissa's pony WILL NOT eat ASDA Value straw."
Majortom: "I shop at Waitrose because if you buy a full tank of helicopter fuel, you get 10% off champagne. It is a recession after all."
David McAndrews: "I shop at Waitrose because Jocasta simply WON'T eat any other supermarkets' sun-ripened quava."
NeilF@neilfranklin: “Self-defined social media 'experts' still don't realise engagement and humour is valid measure of success.”
The Drum: “Social media campaign finds people shop there for the unicorn food and 24ct gold thread toilet paper.”
The Media Blog: "Presumably 'backfiring spectacularly' was the main KPI [key performance indicator] for the @waitrose #waitrosereasons campaign. It's all talkability and buzz, right?”
Meanwhile, a spokesman for Tesco was unable to tell FoodManufacture.co.uk whether or not the retailer planned to stock unicorn food in future.
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