Santa Claus hasn’t always worn red. Long before he became the rosy-cheeked figure we recognise today, his clothing varied widely from green bishop’s robes inspired by Saint Nicholas to fur-lined outfits drawn from Nordic folklore. The roots of Santa trace back to Saint Nicholas, the 4th-century Bishop of Myra (modern-day Turkey), who was often depicted in green and became known for secret acts of generosity that inspired the legend of gift-giving.
The colour red entered Santa’s story much earlier than most people realise. In 1862, American cartoonist Thomas Nast illustrated Santa in red for Harper’s Weekly, portraying him as a supporter of Union troops during the American Civil War. Yet these early depictions were inconsistent, and Santa’s appearance remained fluid well into the early 20th century.
Coca-Cola entered the picture in the 1920s with a simple commercial problem: selling an ice-cold drink during winter. To build a festive emotional connection, the brand commissioned illustrator Haddon Sundblom to create a warm, friendly Santa inspired by Clement Clarke Moore’s poem A Visit from St. Nicholas. Sundblom’s Santa was plump, cheerful, human and approachable and crucially, dressed in Coca-Cola’s signature red.
Although Santa had worn red before, Coca-Cola’s annual holiday campaigns cemented this version into popular culture. Year after year, the brand reinforced the image through print advertising that showed Santa raiding refrigerators, relaxing with families, reading letters, and enjoying a bottle of Coke. What began as brand storytelling soon became collective memory.
Sundblom initially modelled Santa after his friend Lou Prentiss, a retired salesman. After Prentiss passed away, the artist famously used his own reflection as reference. Fans became so invested in Coca-Cola’s Santa that small changes sparked reactions from misplaced belts to the absence of a wedding ring, prompting letters asking about Mrs Claus.
Over time, Coca-Cola’s Santa evolved from an advertising figure into a cultural symbol. While Saint Nicholas gave the world the spirit of generosity, Coca-Cola gave Santa a look that stuck. Perhaps the brand’s greatest creative achievement wasn’t selling soda in winter it was convincing generations that the North Pole’s official dress code would forever be Coca-Cola red.