Nisa’s first foray into the world of television advertising is exceeding expectations, drawing in droves of new shoppers, and piquing retailer interest, the company has said.

The series of 10- and 30- second ads, which hit screens on December 27 and run until February 6, stress the help that Nisa retailers give to their local communities, as well as their range and competitive prices.

Group symbol director John Heagney said he had received “an unprecedented amount of positive responses” to the ads. “We are already seeing the benefits including customers giving positive feedback, members seeing increased sales and enhanced recognition of the Nisa brand,” he added.

Bedfordshire Nisa retailer Kishor Patel said the ads were making an impact on his store. “The response has been brilliant,” he said. “Customers have been chatting to me about the ads, and the number of hits on my website has increased five-fold since they first aired. They are also going down well with other retailers. Today alone, I’ve had four calls from retailers wanting to know more about what it’s like to work with Nisa.”

Independent retailer John Stevenson, whose new store in Stockton was the location of the ad, reported similar success. “Many of my new customers have told me that they came to see the store as a result of seeing the ads,” he said. 

The Co-operative Group also launched a multi-million pound advertising campaign for its food brand this week. The TV campaign encourages customers to make better use of their time by top-up shopping, so they can devote more of it to the “truly important things in life”.

Costcutter also plans to ramp up its TV advertising in 2011. The brand will appear on screens for 30 weeks of the year.