Brands have discovered a new seasonal sampling tool—Advent calendars. Burger King is the latest marketer to jump on the trend, selling a “Most Whopper-ful Time of the Year” calendar with 12 items, ranging from a Burger King figurine to branded sunglasses, stored inside boxes numbered 1-12.

Advent calendars—which typically allow people to count down 24 days until Christmas by opening paper doors for each date—have been around for more than a century. And some brands have been putting out their own versions for many years that often include individual numbered compartments filled with products. But in recent years the trend has accelerated as marketers increasingly view them as a way to be part of consumer holiday rituals, while at the same time testing new product concepts via sampling.

Nail polish brand Olive and June, Alo Yoga and KiwiCo, which sells science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)-based building kits for kids, are among the brands that have introduced Advent calendars since 2020, when lots of marketers began experimenting with them during the early days of the pandemic.

“Homebound consumers liked the homebound activities and daily surprises,” Xiaojing Dong, associate professor of marketing at the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University, said over email, nothing how the calendars have become more popular in recent years.

For buyers, “they can be affordable gifts and have built-in anticipation and excitement,” Dong said. For sellers, “it is an opportunity to offer products sampling to a wide range of potential customers. They coincide with the holiday season by design, because this is the time when consumers are willing to try out and purchase new products for themselves and as gifts for others.”

Burger King will begin selling its calendar on Nov. 22 for $19.54, a nod to the year Burger King was founded. The chain says the total value of the items in the calendar is more than $100. The offerings were inspired by “past and present menu items, iconic campaigns, and memorable moments” throughout the brand’s 70-year history, the fast feeder stated.

Burger King is selling the calendars at a special Shopify site and has begun promoting them on social media. The chain has encouraged some consumers to get alerted via text message the moment the calendars go on sale.

“We see the tradition around the Advent calendar and the appeal in other spaces and thought, hey, there is no reason we can’t do one,” said Zahra Nurani, VP of marketing communications at Burger King. “We want to be part of creating and making memories with our guests.”

“We are already seeing more excitement than we have calendars available,” she added.

Also read: Holiday marketing trends to know

Advent calendar sales have seen notable growth on Amazon. Sales of chocolate-themed calenders rose 49% from October to December in 2023 compared with the same period in 2022, while beauty-themed calendar sales jumped 61%, according to analytics firm Profitero.

Despite Advent calendars having Christian roots, few brands sell faith-based calendars. Instead, they are using “Advent” as an adjective to describe the premise—discovering something new each day before Christmas. At least one brand is leaning into Jewish holiday traditions—Olive and June sells a Hanukkah calendar that can be opened over eight nights.

Anthropologie moved its beauty Advent calendar release up a month to September this year, resulting in 514,000 views on the product webpage—a 64% increase from last year, according to Anu Narayanan, president of women’s and home at Anthropologie.

The 24-day calendar retailed for $98 and sold out in October. It is filled with sample and full-sized beauty products, including nail polish, eye liner, body wash, moisturizer, hand cream, perfumes and lip balm, valued at $304.

KiwiCo started selling its Advent calendars on Amazon this year after learning that consumers were searching for the brand’s calendars there, according to Angela Song, KiwiCo’s chief growth officer. Last year’s calendar sold out in October, even though the brand doubled its order from 2022, Song said. The brand previously only sold the calendars on its website.

“We got our 2024 calendars in mid-October to be ready for when the market picks up in late October,” Song said. “We saw a consumer mindset shift as soon as Halloween happened.”

KiwiCo’s previous Advent calendars included a winter wonderland town scene with a motorized sledding hill; a North Pole scene with Santa’s workshop and a mini train; and a Christmas village set depicting a small town with a store and church. This year’s calendar, which is still available for $70, is a motorized train that is built over 12 days. Customers can put it around the base of their Christmas tree.

Natalie Markoff, chief marketing officer of luxury chocolate brand Vosges, said the pandemic helped make Advent calendars more popular.

“All of us being trapped at home and not having much engagement—I think the daily Advent calendar experience was needed,” she said. “The holidays are beautiful, but they can also be stressful or sad and a calendar offers one moment of joy for 25 days.”

Vosges has been selling Advent calendars since 2014. Its 2024 edition features 25 drawers with high-end treats including chocolates, caramels, cookies and toffee. The calendar is inspired by a Nordic forest chalet and features lights and music.

Some brands have positioned their calendars as collector’s items. KiwiCo’s Advent calendars from previous years can be put next to each other as a larger Christmas village so that families can include them in their holiday decor. Vosges puts a lot of thought into the exterior of its Advent calendars and sells an Advent calendar chocolates refill so that consumers can reuse a box they love. Anthropologie’s Narayanan said customers use the Anthropologie calendar packaging to refill them with gifts tailored to a friend or family member.

“We do think about the keepsake nature of the box,” she said. “The box itself is substantial in weight and each box inside is removable and has unique artwork.”

Pricing risks 

While the calendars can raise brand awareness, brands must ensure buyers get what they pay for. Over the years, brands including Chanel and Dior have gotten backlash for calendars priced at hundreds of dollars containing stickers or the lid of a candle. 

This year, Sephora drew criticism for its Beauty Insider Rewards Advent calendar, which cost 2,500 points (equal to $2,500) for not having any makeup or skincare. Instead, it included a mini hairbrush, scrunchie, reusable makeup remover wipes and reusable eye masks. Sephora’s Favorites Advent Calendar, which cost $99 and has mascara, serums, moisturizer, lip liner, blush, setting spray and powder, seems to have gone over better according to unboxing reviews on social media. Sephora declined to comment.

“The stakes are higher now,” said Vosges’ Markoff. “It has to be perfection.”

For beauty advent calendars in particular, consumers’ top complaint is that brands are charging too much for samples and want to see more full-sized products. But many brands view the calendars as a way to put multiple products in front of a consumer with the goal of driving awareness and sales of full-size items. This year, Anthropologie’s beauty calendar had 24 samples, 15 of which were new and emerging brands including skincare brands Sunday Riley, Elemis and Fleur perfume.

“We include tired and trues for our customer and emerging brands,” said Anthropologie’s Narayanan. She said the calendars have driven sales of the products that are sampled.

Dong pointed out that studies have shown that consumers value samples they paid for more than if they were given to them as a free product. Advent calendars can also help keep products top-of mind. 

“It takes time to finish all the samples,” Dong said. “During those few weeks of sampling, the products are likely to stay in a consumer’s consideration set.”

Brands use the calendars to test new products and predict trends. Asian chili oils and sauce maker Fly By Jing, an Advent calendar newcomer, is testing out new Sichuan sauces that the brand is considering launching. The company plans to use social listening, consumer survey emails and live online chats to gather feedback. It has already sold out of the 2024 calendar ($88), despite no paid marketing. The brand promoted it via email, social media and text marketing, and enjoyed plenty of media coverage, said CEO Jing Gao. “The press ate it up,” she said.

Customer feedback also informs what goes into next year’s calendars. Last year, Vosges’ internal team loved the brand’s ginger chocolate, but it did not resonate with consumers. After each holiday season, the chocolatier sends customers a survey email on their Advent calendar experience, including how the unboxing went. Consumers are asked to rank their favorite chocolates from the collection, feedback that helps drive innovation and assortment selection for the upcoming year. 

Gifting brand Harry and David, which has been selling Advent calendars for about 40 years, has expanded into more savory advent calendars and this year is testing a tea and a spa calendar. While it normally sells them online-only, this year it partnered with Macy’s in New York and Los Angeles to put its Advent calendars in stores.

“This is a great opportunity to partner with an iconic retailer and give customers more choices, especially for those who like to shop in-person,” said Greg Sarley, VP of merchandising at Harry and David.

Aldi started selling Advent calendars in 2017. This year, the grocer has over 20 different calendars for sale, with themes of chocolate, tea, hot sauce, wines, toys and even calendars for pets. While chocolate, cheese and wine advent calendars are sold separately, the products in each are meant to complement each other as a way to encourage food pairings (so that all the products in Day 1 are a match). Prices range from $1.29 for the Choceur Chocolate Advent Calendar to $59.99 for the Wine Advent Calendar.

“Our focus for Advent calendars is more on what truly excites our fans,” said Chantel Hailer, director of national buying for trends at Aldi. “What are they eager to see on our shelves? What will spark that sense of joy and anticipation? What will make them run to the store as soon as our Advent calendars display? It’s all about giving shoppers the products they’ll love.”