It's been another weird week in retail. Ikea made a pizza box fixture larger than life, a uniquely scented product hit Target's beauty aisle and Wingstop paid customers to be walking billboards.
This, and more, in this week's retail therapy.
Ikea flatpacks those little pizza tables
Brands lately have been going against expectations, especially when it comes to collaborations. From Supreme partnering with Oreo, to Crocs teaming up with Peeps for an unexpected Easter product, brands are getting together to both surprise and delight fans.
So when we saw Ikea partnering with Pizza Hut Hong Kong, we can't say we were surprised. The furniture retailer, which may be known for its Swedish meatballs as much as its flat-packed furniture, lent its famous food item to the restaurant for a new pizza topping. Meatballs on pizza? Heck yeah, we're so here for that.
But the fun doesn't stop there. Ikea created life-sized versions of pizza savers — you know, the tiny tables inside pizza boxes to prevent the cheese from sticking to the box? Even better, the product, called Säva, comes flat packed inside a pizza box, according to designboom.
The two companies tapped Ogilvy Hong Kong to lead this truly unique ad campaign. And apparently it's paying off. Designboom reported that the Ikea x Pizza Hut pizza has already sold 67% of its projected units. And why wouldn't it? This is the collaboration none of us knew we needed.
Spring (and the scent of sugary Peeps) is in the air
Easter is right around the corner, which means soon we'll all be inundated with all the Peeps products imaginable — cereal, coffee creamer, the aforementioned Crocs, you name it.
However, Target is selling a product that might prove the world really can have too many of those marshmallow chicks and bunnies. The mass merchant is selling Peeps-branded nail polish in a pack of five for $4.99. OK, it seems a little unnecessary, but we're still all on board.
But wait, here's where things get weird. The nail polish comes scented with the overly sweet, sometimes nauseating smell of marshmallows. What did we do to deserve this?
But luckily (?) for those of us with noses, the product may not smell overwhelmingly like sugar after all, according to reviewers on Target's site:
A lesson learned for anyone trying to unnecessarily mask a product's scent with a barrage of perfume.
Wingstop wants fans to be walking billboards
For years, brands have sold products with their logo plastered so large across the front, that sometimes it seems like the wearer is actually just advertising for the brand. Well, chain restaurant Wingstop wants to pay fans for doing just that.
The restaurant is spending its billboard budget on consumers who wear its branded merchandise. The campaign, which began earlier this week, invited fans to visit its microsite to register for a free sweatshirt. Wingstop encouraged those who won the garment to post pictures of themselves in it on Instagram and tag @Wingstop using the hashtag #ThisIsAnAdForWingstop. The restaurant, in exchange, would pay consumers $10 through Venmo. It truly takes "influencer" to a whole new level.
And if this seems like an easy way to rake in some extra cash, you weren't alone. The sweatshirts were claimed within one day, according to Marketing Dive.
Chick-fil-A bottles up a favorite
Chick-fil-A earlier this week announced its first foray into retail sales. The fast-food chain said it will begin selling its signature Chick-fil-A and Polynesian sauces in bottles at all Florida Publix, Target, Walmart and Winn-Dixie stores as part of a pilot.
This is huge. We're not saying people use the nuggets simply as a vehicle for the sauce, but they have such a cult-like following, people would probably eat the sauces with a spoon.
The 16-fluid ounce bottles of sauce will be available for purchase beginning in April and May starting at $3.49. But the best part of this may be that 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Chick-fil-A Remarkable Futures Scholarship Initiative, a scholarship fund benefiting the restaurant's employees.
"Chick-fil-A Sauce and Polynesian Sauce are our two most popular sauces, so we are extremely excited to offer them at select retail stores outside of the restaurant," Michael Patrick, principal program lead at Beyond the Restaurant, said in a statement. "And because our Team Members are truly our 'secret sauce' to creating a positive experience in our restaurants, each time a customer purchases a Bottled Sauce at a participating retailer, the Chick-fil-A profits will support Team Members through our scholarship program."