Corona marks the 30th anniversary of its iconic “O’Tannenpalm” Christmas ad

This year marks 30 years since Corona beer debuted its iconic “O’Tannenpalm” TV commercial and to celebrate, the brand delivered a little slice of paradise to folks in Corona Del Mar, California via MullenLowe PR LA.

Corona’s “O’Tannenpalm” is one of the most classic Christmas ad ever, perhaps the simplest distillation of a brand within a holiday context ever produced. And it’s certainly stood the test of time—having first premiered in 1990.

Now, to celebrate its 30th birthday, the team at MullenLowe PR Los Angeles concocted a pretty chill stunt in Corona Del Mar. They outfitted a flatbed truck with a replica of the beach hut from the commercial, alongside palm trees adorned with twinkling lights. Then, a team of Corona brand ambassadors—socially distanced and with the proper PPE, of course—delivered fully decorated palm trees to residents around town?

Corona Del Mar was chosen not just for its brand-friendly name but because anything with Corona in its name could use some extra loving right now.

Through this Friday, Corona is expanding deliveries to residents all over California. People can enter a sweepstakes for a chance to receive a palm tree by following @CoronaExtraUSA and replying with #FelizNavidadSweepstakes.

Also, Corona is donating US$30k/£22.2k to #HashtagLunchbag, a nonprofit that creates and distributes bagged lunches nationwide, accompanied by inspiring hand-written messages.

“With this year marking the 30th anniversary of the ‘O’Tannenpalm’ commercial, we wanted to pull-through as much inspiration from the iconic spot as possible. We anchored the stunt in simplicity and nostalgia—and the decision to activate in Corona Del Mar was our tongue-in-cheek way of acknowledging the unique challenges of 2020,” says Kayla Gorski, VP of MullenLowe PR LA.

“From an execution standpoint, this was by far our most layered and complex production of the year, which was ironic, given its simplicity. We meticulously evaluated every production detail to ensure we were pulling it off as safely as possible, operating with an incredibly small crew, drone operator, giant boom mics and cue cards to maintain social distance, and more. If the pandemic has taught us anything from a stunt perspective, it has been the value of being lean and mean, and how to game plan for every possible scenario.”

Translate »