Associate Brand Manager

Beware of Cranpus: Ocean Spray, Bryan Cranston introduce mythical cranberry-stealing creature. Ocean Spray partnered with creative agency Piggyback and Current Global to create and market the campaign spotlighting cranberries as a holiday table staple. MIDDLEBOROUGH, MA: You better watch out! You better not cry. Better not pout, I'm telling you why: Cranpus, Santa Claus' cranberry-stealing counterpart, is coming to town - and no holiday table is safe. Ocean Spray, the agriculture cooperative that produces juices and other seasonal products from cranberries, has teamed up with award-winning actor Bryan Cranston to introduce Cranpus. The mythical holiday character is brought to life by Cranston himself as a larger-than-life figure who steals cranberries from festive gatherings and celebrations everywhere. The stunt is part of Ocean Spray's latest ad campaign, Just Add Cran, Beware of Cranpus, intended as a playful, cinematic reminder that cranberries are the essential staple of the holiday season, the brand said in a statement. The concept is Ocean Spray's first integrated campaign built with a celebrity across platforms, said Ocean Spray head of brand elevation Eliza Sadler. It's also the most unexpected way for the brand to tell its holiday story. "I would say this is the boldest and most breakthrough [campaign] we've ever done in my experience at Ocean Spray, and also probably in my career," Sadler emphasized, noting that the horned, caped creature is anything but conventional for the cranberry brand. While Cranpus is seemingly a play on Krampus, the hooved European folklore creature who acts as a darker counterpart to St. Nicholas, Sadler explained that Cranpus is an original Ocean Spray character: a mythical lover of cranberries, half-man, half-goat, born from the bogs. "It's an opportunity for us to tell the story of cranberry essentiality during the season with the embodiment of Cranpus, because he loves cranberries so much he wants them all for himself," she explained. "It's going to take on a life of its own and it's a momentum that we want to sustain." Ocean Spray began teasing its partnership with the mischievous cranberry-stealer on October 10, posting videos to its social platforms of cranberries mysteriously missing from its bogs, leaning into a "cran-spiracy." The horned, sarcastic creature now has full control of all of the social accounts, even updating Ocean Spray's bio: "Cranpus, half-man, half-goat. All up in your Cran. Been living under a Cranberry Bog for the last 300 years, so pardon my social skills." The brand premiered the story of Cranpus on Wednesday with a 60-second film on streaming TV and social media that depicts the antics of the cranberry-thieving character. Piggyback, Ocean Spray's creative AOR, worked on the campaign's collateral while Current Global is supporting the brand's PR efforts. Ocean Spray has worked with both firms for "some time now," according to Sadler. The Beware of Cranpus campaign will also feature bespoke content, teasers for launches throughout the holiday months and assets on the brand's shopper platforms. Ocean Spray is always thinking about the holiday season, otherwise known as the brand's "Super Bowl," Sadler said, but it was looking for a way to disrupt meaningfully this year and connect with consumers in a typically crowded space. The original idea started as Just Add Cran, Not Cranston, a play on the actor's last name in a spot that would feature Cranston as himself, but as a similarly cranberry-obsessed character. Ocean Spray and its agency partners put together a creative concept and pitched it to Cranston's team with a "fingers-crossed" mentality, according to Sadler. "Lucky for us, he was so invested in the concept and the idea that he said 'absolutely, but I think we can make it bigger. I think we can make it better. I think we can make it bolder,'" she explained. "That was the impetus of a partnership and a collaboration that became Beware of Cranpus, everything from the character to the narrative, to all of the different assets that we put together." The campaign came together within a few months, from the Cranston pitch to workshopping the idea with the actor and his team followed by creative, the shoot and production, which was filmed a few weeks ago. Despite the spot's release, Cranpus' antics aren't done. Fans can expect mischievous moments to spill into digital channels, interactive social content and future surprises throughout the holiday season, kicking off early ahead of the Thanksgiving feasts. "Year over year, we are striving to find new ways to tap into different platforms where consumers are," Sadler said, such as creating assets that feel bespoke on TikTok, Instagram or other mediums. Particularly with this campaign, Ocean Spray wanted to "get in the habit of storytelling," she said, to connect with consumers in meaningful, compelling ways that aren't just transactional. By creating a narrative that has a place in culture, Cranpus and Ocean Spray can live on beyond the holiday feasts to cranberry-themed meals year-round. "This is, in my mind, the boldest thing we've ever done. We're super thrilled, we cannot wait for it to go out into the world and are excited to see what's to come," she added. "This idea of a 360 approach to advertising and brand building in a maverick, disruptive way is what we're committed to and will continue to commit to."

Kicking Off a Multi-Year Partnership, Ocean Spray Launches Sweepstakes Offering the Chance to Win a Trip to 2025 Leagues Cup Final   BOSTON, May 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., announces its multi-year sponsorship of Leagues Cup and is named the official juice of the tournament. Entering its third year following the inaugural edition in 2023, the annual summer soccer competition features clubs from Major League Soccer (MLS) and LIGA MX. This new partnership is an extension of Ocean Spray's brand campaign – Just Add Cran™ which centers on the belief that when you add cranberry to any dish or moment – even a soccer game – good things happen