De’Longhi appoints VCCP

Following an initial research and experiential collaboration with De’Longhi, the world’s leading domestic coffee machine brand, VCCP has been appointed as their creative and strategy agency of record for the UK and Ireland without a call for pitch.

The relationship began when VCCP’s Retail Experience team undertook shopper research and retail redesign work for De’Longhi across Curry’s and John Lewis. This led to the creation of ‘The Art of Perfetto’ - an experiential showcase at The London Coffee Festival celebrating De’Longhi’s Italian heritage, design and craftsmanship. From this, VCCP was appointed the strategic partner to build De’Longhi’s Concentrated Brand Identity, setting the stage for a unified and distinctive brand world.

De’Longhi is the world’s leading domestic coffee machine brand, offering high-performance and stylish appliances that bring espresso-level experiences to home consumers. With the home coffee category continuing to grow and diversify, De’Longhi is seizing the moment to strengthen its brand identity and cement its position as the market leader.

VCCP, the global challenger network for challenger brands, was chosen for its deep capability in uncovering audience insight and translating it into clearly articulated, coherent brand identities. Crucially, VCCP’s fully integrated model - bringing research, retail experience, strategy and creative together under one roof - enabled a seamless evolution from project-based work to full agency partnership.

The agency brings a proven heritage in effectiveness with multiple IPA awards, including recognition for brands such as Cadbury - strengthening the foundation for a long-term, brand-building partnership.

Helen Cutmore, Marketing Director UK & Ireland at De’Longhi, said: “VCCP’s razor-sharp audience lens and strategic rigour aligned exactly with our ambition to transition from category leader to cultural icon. Their track record in award-winning effectiveness - especially within highly competitive FMCG sectors - gave us the confidence to appoint them as our agency of record without a pitch. We look forward to collaborating on a brand ecosystem that’s both distinctive and deeply connected to our consumers.”

Andrew Peake, CEO at VCCP London, added: “We’re thrilled to be stepping up as De’Longhi’s creative and strategy partner in the UK and Ireland. Our journey began with research and retail experience, but thanks to our integrated model and belief that ‘it only works if it all works’, we’ve been able to build real momentum together. We’re excited to now apply that thinking at brand level - challenging convention to create lasting value and helping De’Longhi stand out in a fast-evolving category.”

VCCP will now embark on defining De’Longhi’s brand identity architecture and creative world, ahead of delivering full campaign work later in 2025.