Iconic Christmas ads: from Coca-Cola to today’s campaigns
In short: no, Coca-Cola did not invent the red Santa. The brand standardised and spread the image worldwide from 1931 — a key lesson: a brand doesn’t need to invent a symbol to own it; it just needs to repeat it loudly enough.
The Coca-Cola myth, corrected
- The legend: Coca-Cola supposedly invented the red-and-white Santa to match its brand colours.
- The reality: a Santa in a red coat with white fur trim already existed before Coca-Cola. In 1931, the brand commissioned illustrator Haddon Sundblom to create a warm Santa, inspired by Clement Clarke Moore’s poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (1823). Coca-Cola didn’t invent the image — it standardised and spread it globally.
The marketing lesson: people don’t remember who created a symbol, but who repeated it loudest. Coca-Cola turned its Santa into a distinctive brand asset — and even into an origin legend.
Why Christmas is advertisers’ ultimate playground
- A yearly appointment: audiences wait for year-end ads, compare and comment on them.
- A licence for emotion: it’s the one moment a brand can make you cry without seeming out of place (John Lewis-style sagas).
- A commercial peak: behind the emotion lies retail’s most important month.
Before / After: from symbol to emotional saga
| Before | After (2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| Register | Brand world (Santa, truck) | Short film, story, endearing character |
| Repetition | Identical every year | Teasing + reveal + social cut-downs |
| Distribution | Prime-time TV | TV + YouTube + TikTok + retail media |
| Message | “we are the magic” | “a story that looks like you” |
The common thread is the ritual. Before, brands repeated a reassuring symbol; today, they tell an anticipated story. Either way, the brand wants to become a piece of Christmas.
What it teaches brands in 2026
- Repeat your distinctive assets (character, music, colour): they end up belonging to you.
- Christmas = a licence to move people, but stay sincere (audiences sense calculated emotion).
- Think season, not spot: teasing, film, social cut-downs, in-store activation.
- Myths are built: a good brand story tells itself.
FAQ
Did Coca-Cola invent the red Santa? No. A red-and-white Santa existed before Coca-Cola’s campaigns. In 1931, Haddon Sundblom created a warm version for the brand, which then standardised and spread it worldwide.
Why are Christmas ads so emotional? Christmas is one of the rare moments when audiences accept — even expect — emotionally charged communication, often as a narrative short film.
What makes a good Christmas ad today? A sincere story, an endearing character, recurring brand assets, and a multichannel setup rather than a single spot.
Sources
- Snopes — origin of Santa Claus: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/coca-cola-santa-claus-origin/
- Coca-Cola — Haddon Sundblom & the Coca-Cola Santas: https://www.coca-colacompany.com/about-us/history/haddon-sundblom-and-the-coca-cola-santas
PubliCité France — Before/After section. Cited brands belong to their owners. French version: /avant-apres/pubs-de-noel-cultes/