Patrick BiddiscombeNew Breed · Founder & CEO of New Breed | HubSpot-Led Growth | Advisor to HubSpot & FinQore

Did You Know: Coca Cola “Invented” The Santa Claus We Know Today?

Name: Did You Know: Coca Cola “Invented” The Santa Claus We Know Today?
Uploaded: 2022-03-16T14:00:31+00:00
Duration: 45 s
Channel: Patrick Biddiscombe
Description: Patrick Biddiscombe traces how Coca-Cola shaped the Santa we know today. Before 1931, Santa looked different across ads. Coca-Cola hired illustrator…

16 Mar 2022 · 1 min

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Patrick Biddiscombe traces how Coca-Cola shaped the Santa we know today. Before 1931, Santa looked different across ads. Coca-Cola hired illustrator Haddon Sundblom, whose warm, rosy-cheeked Santa became the standard image used everywhere.

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Did you know? Coca Cola invented Santa Claus? Okay, so they didn't create the legend of Santa Claus, but Coca Cola advertising did play a major role in shaping the jolly character we all know today. Before 1931, there were a lot of different depictions of Santa Claus around the marketing world, including this original from a Koch campaign in the 1920s. But in 1931, Coca Cola commissioned illustrator Fred Meizen to paint a new Santa for Christmas advertisements. The painting depicted a department store Santa enjoying a Coke as children looked on. But this Santa was not as jolly as ad executives would have liked. So they hired illustrator Hayden Sunblom to establish Santa as a warm, happy character with human features, including rosy cheeks and a big white beard, twinkling eyes, and laughter lines. His marketing efforts solidified the iconic Santa that we know today.