Carlsberg has unveiled special Year of the Horse bottles, cans, and packs—paired with an AI-enhanced traditional design and a SKAI ISYOURGOD music collaboration—as part of a multi-market Lunar New Year campaign aimed at deepening cultural relevance and youth engagement across Asia at a time when festive branding is increasingly central to regional beer competition.
What’s New
Carlsberg has rolled out a Lunar New Year limited-edition packaging range for the Year of the Horse, featuring bottles, cans, and multipacks designed for at-home celebrations and social gatherings.
Key elements of the design include:
- A stylised Horse motif depicted “riding above the sky.”
- Carlsberg’s Hop Leaf reimagined as traditional “lucky clouds.”
- A dark green base accented with red and gold—colours culturally associated with happiness, prosperity, and good fortune.
Blending tradition with technology
The creative concept draws on the Gilding Lacquer Art Technique, historically used on high-end decorative objects across Asia as a symbol of affluence.
Carlsberg paired this heritage reference with artificial intelligence in the final design process, intentionally juxtaposing traditional craftsmanship with modern digital creation.
Music Partnership & Campaign Creative
Carlsberg has partnered with Chinese rapper SKAI ISYOURGOD to produce a Lunar New Year remix of his viral track Blueprint Supreme.
- The reworked version features Carlsberg-name-forward lyrics and a festive sonic tone.
- The remix anchors a new TV commercial that blends pop culture with seasonal celebration.
- The audio assets are designed to travel consistently across broadcast, digital, and social platforms.
Crystal Lee, Marketing Director, Carlsberg China, said the partnership was chosen to connect with younger consumers who strongly identify with SKAI ISYOURGOD’s music and persona.
She highlighted that the campaign creates a “youth-centric ecosystem” that mirrors how this audience consumes culture today, using repetition and emotional resonance to drive brand recall during the festive period.
Regional Rollout Across Asia
Jeff Chong, Director of International Premium Brands, Carlsberg Asia, positioned Lunar New Year as a regionally shared but locally lived moment.
The campaign is live across key markets including:
- Mainland China
- Hong Kong S.A.R.
- Malaysia
- Singapore
- Vietnam
Activation began in late December 2025 and spans:
- Limited-edition packaging in retail
- Television advertising
- Social media activations and digital touchpoints
- Locally tailored creative executions within a unified regional framework
Continuity of Carlsberg’s Zodiac Strategy
This marks Carlsberg’s sixth consecutive year celebrating Lunar New Year with zodiac-themed packaging.
Since 2021, the brewer has released annual Chinese zodiac packs, building a recurring seasonal franchise intended to make festive moments more meaningful for consumers while strengthening brand familiarity during peak consumption periods.
Why It Matters
- Rising importance of cultural marketing: As competition in the Asian beer market intensifies, culturally rooted seasonal campaigns are becoming a key battleground for relevance and differentiation.
- Youth engagement strategy: The SKAI ISYOURGOD collaboration signals Carlsberg’s continued push to connect with Gen Z and younger millennial drinkers through music and digital culture.
- Heritage-meets-tech positioning: The blend of traditional lacquer aesthetics with AI reflects a broader marketing trend of pairing cultural authenticity with contemporary innovation.
- Regional scale, local nuance: The modular campaign structure allows Carlsberg to balance brand consistency with market-specific cultural rituals—an increasingly critical capability for multinational brewers in Asia.
At a Glance
- What: Lunar New Year limited-edition packaging for the Year of the Horse
- How: Traditional-inspired design enhanced with AI; music-led campaign
- Who: Collaboration with SKAI ISYOURGOD
- Where: Mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam
- When: Campaign live from late December 2025
- Why: To deepen cultural resonance and drive festive engagement among younger consumers
Also read Celebrating Lunar New Year at Luxury Destinations Across Asia
