Christmas season is starting and it’s happening at Postitalo, Helsinki! Napa Agency was proud to attend this year’s Christmas stamp launch event, as the 2025 Christmas stamps have been illustrated by the legendary illustrator Mauri Kunnas! Christmas has been a dear topic to Kunnas since the illustrated children’s book Santa Claus was released back in 1981. Mauri’s handiwork has been seen in Christmas stamps twice before, in 1996 and 2005. The graphic design of the stamps was executed by Napa Agency’s star Jenna Kunnas, who added the final touches to the illustrations.
The themes of the 2025 stamps are downright delightful – Gingerbread cookies dancing on an oven tray and singing in a Christmas choir with Santa leading the show. The no-value indicator stamp Pipariparaati (Gingerbread Parade) will be issued as a 20-stamp sheet and the domestic non-value indicator stamp Piparikuoro (Gingerbread Choir) will be issued as a 10-stamp sheet. The stamps are unique – also in the sense that Mauri Kunnas no longer makes commissioned illustrations, except in extremely rare cases.
What made the day especially memorable was the Posti Goup’s first-day event in which Mauri Kunnas signed the brand new Christmas stamps for lucky attendees. This was a rare chance to get a signature from Finland’s most successful children’s book illustrator who has created several beloved book classics and iconic illustrations. Along with the signature, attendees had the chance to get a unique first-day event stamp with a gingerbread character based on the Christmas stamps illustrations.
Napa Agency’s agent Marjo Oliva got the chance to follow Mauri at work behind the table at the event. Posti Group is a long time valued collaborator for Napa Agency – and also an instance that gets the whole country in a Christmas mood, after all the anticipation of Christmas often starts with the mailing of Christmas cards!
Before the signing event, Posti had organized a special event for the media, where invited guests had the opportunity to interview Mauri and hear his thoughts on designing stamps & writing and illustrating books – as well as his favorite subject, Christmas. At the event we also had the privilege to hear how Mauri and his family celebrate Christmas:
“The children and their families gather together in our big house for a few days. We don’t repeat every single tradition by the book every year, but Christmas certainly comes with a sense of continuity and permanence.”
Mauri also revealed that what he enjoys the most on Christmas are getting ready for the Holiday, the decorations, the food, and especially the Christmas songs! Cheerful tunes like the Finnish classic Nisse-polkka work best, he said, but also classic American Christmas albums by Nat King Cole, Sinatra, and Elvis are on his playlist. The entire interview can be found on Posti’s communication channels (like the Posti’s website in Finnish) and later at the Postal Museum.
We’d like to extend a warm thank you to Posti Group and Mauri Kunnas for this amazing Christmas collaboration, and to Jenna Kunnas for the wonderful graphic design that perfected the delicious Christmas stamp package! Special thanks also to Tommi Kantola, Posti’s design manager, without whom this project would not have been possible and also to Suomen Korttipiste for the beautiful Christmas cards which are available at Postitalo.
You can buy these stamps from Posti’s webshop here: Pipariparaati & Piparikuoro.
Finally, we would like to give you a tip that the Christmas spirit won’t just be on stamps this year! The elves have whispered that it’s worth watching Santa’s Hotline program TV special on YLE (Finnish Broadcasting Company) on Christmas Eve, when Kunnas’ latest short animation will premiere!