How Crayola and OpenFortune Went Live in 16 Days

Author

Carlo Palomino
January 02, 2026

Welcome back to The Friday Fortune! And just like that, we’re officially into the new year. Fresh calendars, big plans, and that familiar mix of optimism and “okay, but let’s actually execute this time.”

January is always heavy on strategy, vision, and long-term planning. We’re all for it. But we’re just as focused on momentum, because ideas don’t win on slides. They win when teams move, decide, and ship.

That’s the lens we bring to this newsletter. Each week, we share real stories from the front lines of modern marketing: brands taking smart risks, teams moving fast, and partnerships that actually work.

Which brings us to this week.

One of the questions we get asked most is…

How our fortune cookie advertising operation actually works behind the scenes?

More specifically, how fast can we take an idea, turn it into a real campaign, and get cookies out into the world?

A few weeks ago, we decided to put that question to the test and partnered with Crayola on a Holiday Sprint that became the fastest turnaround we’ve ever executed.

In case you’re new here, OpenFortune turns fortune cookies into a scalable, measurable, full-funnel advertising channel. We’ve worked with companies like Dude Wipes, Hulu and Liquid Death to handle everything end-to-end: creative, production, distribution, and placement of billions of cookies inside 100,000+ restaurants where people are already paying attention.

It’s physical media, but it runs with the targeting, measuring, and scalability of modern digital campaigns.

Now, to be very clear: this is not our normal turnaround time. This was a full-throttle, Q4-only, everything-clicks kind of moment. And it only worked because both teams showed up ready to move.

Here’s how it played out:

• Verbal greenlight on November 24
• Creative approvals over Thanksgiving week
• Final approvals locked by December 3
• Live in market by December 10

Sheeesh.

We moved at the speed of light to get everything teed up. The Crayola team trusted the process, made clear calls, and didn’t overcomplicate a single step. Alignment like that is rare and powerful.

Huge credit to the entire Crayola team for showing what a real partnership looks like. And kudos to our own team for delivering without shortcuts.

This is how momentum gets built.

If you’re thinking about 2026 and want a partner who moves fast, makes decisive calls, and isn’t afraid to take a real swing, let’s talk.

Crack open a handful of the week’s best marketing links—because good fortune favors the curious.

That’s a wrap for this week’s Friday fortune.

If you enjoyed the read, pass it along to your favorite marketer who could use a little extra inspo in their inbox.

Until next time, may your marketing be memorable and your cookies always be fortunate!

— The OpenFortune team