Crate and Barrel, Parachute team up for exclusive collection

Dive Brief:

Crate and Barrel teamed up with direct-to-consumer bedding brand Parachute to launch a new line, the companies announced earlier this week.
The Parachute for Crate and Barrel collection will have a limited six-month run, ending July 31, the companies said in emailed announcements. Customers can find the collection in 65 Crate and Barrel stores as well as on its website.
The line, which offers designs exclusively for this partnership, will feature bedding and bath products, including sheets, throw pillows, bath towels, blankets, duvets and Parachute's mattresses.

Dive Insight:

Inking deals with traditional retailers isn't anything new for direct-to-consumer brands. While selling through third-party channels poses a threat of hurting a DTC's margins, the exposure and brand awareness help make up for that.

Retailers like Nordstrom, Target and Walmart have integrated direct-to-consumer brands into their overall retail strategy. Walmart has acquired e-commerce brands like Bare Necessities, Eloquii and Bonobos in recent years (though the retail giant has since sold off some of those brands or reallocated resources as it revamps its e-commerce strategy).

Digitally native brands, which in some cases swore off physical retail initially, are entering brick and mortar to offset the high advertising and marketing costs associated with acquiring consumers online. The partnership places Parachute's complementary products in front of the eyes of Crate and Barrel's customers.

"With Crate and Barrel's quality products, reach and timeless style, we're excited to team up with a growing brand like Parachute to bring their relaxed yet modern take on bedding that we love to our customers nationwide," Alicia Waters, chief marketing officer at Crate and Barrel, said in a statement. "We're committed to bringing quality and responsibly-sourced home goods to our customers."

But for Crate and Barrel, the partnership also offers the opportunity to attract Parachute's online customers to its own website. The retailer has been pursuing digital initiatives in recent years, halting TV ads during the 2019 holiday season and refocusing those dollars into social channels like Instagram, and more recently rolling out its first digital-only catalog in September on Pinterest.

The investments into digital came as e-commerce broadly experienced explosive growth as the pandemic discouraged in-store shopping. Former CEO Neela Montgomery last May said she didn't anticipate the split between online sales and store sales to revert to pre-pandemic levels, and will continue to skew in favor of e-commerce.