Gifted with the same powers as the jolly man from the North Pole, Rapala’s iconic Santa Bass handles the aquatic side of gift-giving.
He sees anglers on boats in the summer when they yearn for a different size of their favorite bait. He sees blank spaces on walls where memories of the year’s biggest catches could live. He sees the overflowing tacklebox that won’t stay closed.
Nothing gets past this sneaky creature. For the gift givers whose angler friends and family are on the Nice List, Rapala’s iconic Santa Bass lights the path to the perfect present.
With the help of our creatives here at Pocket Hercules, Rapala Fishing Lures unveils a new iteration of Santa Bass each year.
The tradition began in 2011, after a back-page print ad campaign that featured bass and walleye doing “smart” things–such as playing chess or reading–with the headline “Because fish aren’t dumb” proved to be a hit.
Then-Vice President of Public Relations, Stephen Dupont, had the remarkable idea to put a Santa hat on these fellas and coined the term “Santa Bass.” The team loved it, and the rest was history.
“Santa Bass for Rapala became the connection between fishing and the holidays,” said Matt Jensen, Director of Marketing at Rapala. “We have always felt when you give the gift of fishing, you give more than a simple present. You give memories, laughter, excitement and eventually a hobby that brings a healthier lifestyle of enjoying the outdoors. Santa Bass is fun and creative, pulling consumers to see what’s inside the fishing gift bag of goodies that Rapala has to help people catch more and bigger fish!”
In celebration of Santa Bass, here are some of our favorites in recent memory:
Santa “Puppet” Bass
This guy is a real-life bass puppet, and he stands about three feet tall. First used in the 2024 CrushCity™ spot, Welcome to Minnow King, he’s been the source of many umami-forward drive-through orders. It was only a matter of time before he took on the coveted role of Santa Bass. To bring him to life, our art directors dressed him up in seasonal garb meant for medium-sized dogs. Fitting!
Santa “Stocking Stuffer” Bass
This iteration of Santa Bass is a particularly hungry guy. He’s trying to play it cool, but, surrounded by candy canes and equally scrumptious Rapala classics, he just longs for a snack. His big frown and bulging eyes give him away. Poor Santa Bass.
Santa “Nick” Bass
This pig-in-a-beard is your classic dutiful Santa. He spends his time casting a noble stare off into the distance, pondering how many kinds of hawg-nip he can fit into this year’s stockings before the whole local fish population is left dragging their big bellies across the lake floor on December 26th. What a guy!
Santa Bass comes out in December every year, but we’re making fish’s mouths water with Rapala all year round. Click here to check out more of our work with Rapala.