Most of us remember the advent calendars we had as kids. A snowy village printed on thin card, 24 little doors you had to prise open with a fingernail, and a square of chocolate that tasted faintly of the box. It wasn't much, but you'd race downstairs for it every morning. That feeling hasn't gone anywhere. What's changed is what waits behind the door, and this year's favourites are full of advent calendar ideas worth stealing. (If you'd like the backstory first, read the history of the advent calendar.)
When does the advent calendar start?
The first door opens on 1 December and the last one on Christmas Eve. Advent itself starts a little earlier, on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, which falls at the end of November or the very start of December. So if you're giving a calendar, hand it over in the last days of November. Nobody wants to start on door three.
What's behind the doors now
Walk into any shop in November and you'll see how far things have moved. The chocolate calendars are still there, but they're often pushed to one side by skincare sets, perfume minis and boxes of tiny treats. For a lot of people, the beauty calendar has become the present of the season.
Some of the names are more surprising. Red Bull makes an advent calendar. So do Lego and Squishmallows, whose fans collect them like football stickers. Bonne Maman fills one with little jars of jam and spreads, which might be the cosiest breakfast idea of December. And somewhere this year, a dog will be getting a treat every morning from a calendar of its own.
Even men, who for years were lucky to get a bar of chocolate, now have whole shelves to choose from.
Why the good ones work
The calendars people keep talking about have a few things in common. They turn December into a small daily ritual, so they get far more attention than a single present handed over on the day. What's inside is small, but it's real: a lip balm you'll actually use, a jam you'd never have bought for yourself.
The best ones also build towards something. A Lego calendar is a little town by Christmas Eve. They're chosen with one person in mind, the tea lover, the football fan, the dog owner, so opening them feels personal. And because a calendar sits on a shelf or a desk for weeks, the box itself has to look good too.
Advent calendar ideas to borrow
You don't need a famous brand behind you to use the same tricks. A few ideas to get you started:
A different tea, coffee or hot chocolate for each morning, with a mug that carries their name to drink it from.
Mini jams, honey and spreads for someone who loves a slow breakfast.
Little luxuries they'd never buy for themselves, from smoked salt to a good hand cream.
Pieces of a puzzle that only make sense on the 24th.
Small finds from makers in your own town.
A voucher behind each door: a coffee out, a cinema ticket, a lie-in.
Notes looking back on the year you've shared. They cost nothing, and they're often the part people keep.
The classic, made yours
And then there's the calendar we all grew up with. A chocolate advent calendar might be the oldest idea in this article, but it's still one of the best, especially once it carries your name. With a personalised advent calendar, your own design, logo or team photo covers the front, and there's chocolate behind every door, from fair trade milk chocolate to favourites like Celebrations or Lindt Lindor. Everyone knows how it works, nobody says no to chocolate, and it stays on the desk or the kitchen shelf for the whole of December, with your brand in view every single morning.
So, what to put in an advent calendar?
Red Bull doesn't need an advent calendar to sell drinks. What it gets is a place in someone's morning for 24 days in a row, in the busiest month of the year, and very little of what we give away lasts that long. That's the real secret behind every calendar in this article. The chocolate matters less than you'd think: keep it small, choose it with one person in mind, and give them a reason to come back tomorrow. And if you're planning more for December, our Christmas marketing ideas are a nice place to start.
