Candle manufacturer Yankee Candle has launched its ‘Make it more Magical’ campaign for Christmas 2024. The multichannel push is managed by Houston and marks the brand’s first above-the-line (ATL) campaign since 2017.

Yankee Candle has been around since 1969, when 16-year-old Mike Kittredge, unable to afford a Christmas present for his mother, created a candle using household wax, a red crayon, string and a milk carton. The origins of the story have informed the brand’s focus on gift-sharing. 

The 360-degree campaign will span across TV, print, out-of-home (OOH), experiential, PR, social and digital platforms. It will aim to celebrate and underline the magical moments shared during the Christmas period. 

Yankee Candle senior marketing manager Jo Evans said: “We were taken on a magical journey with this campaign and are excited for what lies ahead for Yankee Candle. This is just the beginning.”

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A TV ad, crafted by Modern Citizens and directed by Christian Bevilacqua, brings to life the inimitable smell of Christmas. It follows a nurse who upon stepping off a bus on Christmas Eve, is transported home by the familiar scent of a Yankee Candle.

The journey sees her floating across a festive high street and chimney tops before arriving at her suburban home, where her family is engaged in Christmas Eve preparations.

“It’s not every day you get the opportunity to make a massive Christmas campaign with the world’s biggest candle brand,” Modern Citizens chief growth officer, Ben Middleton said.

“When this brief came floating through the door we couldn’t have been more excited to get things off the ground!”