Ocean Spray Crashes Chicken Shops to Rewrite Rules of Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry sauce isn’t just for Christmas turkey. This year, Ocean Spray is taking aim at a far bigger cultural icon - the London chicken shop - in a guerrilla campaign from creative company Ace of Hearts designed to redefine when (and how) cranberry sauce is enjoyed.

On Friday 5th December, undercover Secret Santa's quietly appeared across three of South London’s busiest chicken shops, surprising customers with free pots of Ocean Spray cranberry sauce for their fried chicken, wings and chargrilled favourites. Anyone who spotted a Santa and greeted him with a festive 'Ho ho ho' unlocked the upgrade.

To fuel the hunt, Ace of Hearts enlisted South London favourites Ollie Eats and Paul Olima, who documented their Santa searches for their hyper-engaged local audiences - bringing humour, chaos and credibility to the stunt.

Built around the hashtag #MakeChickenChristmassy, the activation took cranberry sauce out of the dining room and into the chicken shop. The activation engineered real-world surprise, an unexpected twist on seasonal norms and helped the brand break free from its once-a-year Christmas cameo - proving cranberry sauce belongs with Britain’s most-loved bird all year round.

This marks the first step in Ocean Spray’s wider ambition: to evolve cranberry sauce from a Christmas sidekick into a year-round condiment. By targeting chicken shops - a high-frequency dining occasion where condiments shape culture - the brand is claiming a new flavour moment and inviting chicken lovers everywhere to rethink how cranberry fits into their daily meals.

Ocean Spray has also sent gift boxes to the CEOs of chicken shops across the UK, challenging them to stock cranberry sauce and join the movement to champion cranberry + chicken as the next big British flavour pairing.