Coca-Cola Reflects on 29 years of Christmas in the Park

For the last 29 years, Coca-Cola in New Zealand* has marked the beginning of the festive season with its exciting annual community event, Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park.

The free event, held in both Auckland and Christchurch, is Coca-Cola’s annual gift to the community, providing a night of music, fireworks and festive energy. 

Marketing Services Manager at Coca-Cola Oceania, Annette Chillingworth, has been at the helm of Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park since the inaugural festival in 1994 and says that she is delighted and privileged to have been involved with iconic Kiwi event from the very beginning.

“Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park has always been an opportunity to give something magical to our community and bring friends and families together to celebrate this special time of year. The concert has become a highlight of many for the festive season and now almost three generations have grown up with it as part of their lives, including my children and now my grandchildren,” said Chillingworth.

Chillingworth’s involvement in the community event has seen her attend every rehearsal and live performance in both Auckland and Christchurch, amounting to 108 viewings of the concert.  She has witnessed firsthand the immediate success of the concert and the evolution of what it has become today.

“It has been a truly special experience bringing so much joy to our communities every year and watching some of New Zealand’s greatest talents on our big stage, such as Hayley Westenra in the early days of her career” continued Chillingworth.

Since its inception 29 years ago, the concert has created magic across Auckland and Christchurch. Some highlights for Chillingworth have included; dropping potato flake ‘snow’ on Hagley Park, Biplanes swooping over the crowd to a rendition of ‘Snoopy’s Christmas’ and the infamous arrival of abseiling Santa to the Auckland Domain.

General Manager of Strategy and Brand of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners NZ (CCEP NZ), Wendy Rayner, says that CCEP NZ is driven by creating positive change and bringing communities together, and the iconic Christmas in the Park is testament to this.

“We’re extremely proud that our annual Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park event has been bringing magic and joy to hundreds of thousands of Kiwis for 29 years.  Supporting local communities is at the heart of what we do and this free event for Auckland and Christchurch is an important part of that,” says Rayner.

Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park will return this year with a showstopping line up of talent including popular singer-songwriter Kaylee Bell in Auckland, 2022 Breakthrough Artist of the Year singer-songwriter Georgia Lines in Christchurch and crowd favorites Vince Harder, Ella Monnery, Lavina Williams, Tom Batchelor, and Nyree Huyser at both events.

Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park will be held on 25 November in Hagley Park, Christchurch and 9 December at the Auckland Domain with festivities starting at 7:30pm.

*Coca-Cola Oceania and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners NZ