You cannot overstate the impact and reach that the July 21 theatrical release of Warner Bros.’ “Barbie” had in 2023. It resulted in one of the largest cultural marketing moments ever. During the promotional period, seemingly everyone was talking about the movie, and every brand, retailer, restaurant and business found a way to partake in and capitalize on it — especially Warner Bros. and toy maker Mattel. While not every movie release or licensed product can or will measure up to the impact “Barbie” had on marketing this year, entertainment tie-ins and licensing agreements are not a new concept to brand marketers. But the way they leverage the occasions has evolved, perhaps with a widened view of what is possible. Here’s a sampling of some tie-ins the Path to Purchase Institute spotted this year.
An elevator at the Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Illinois, temporarily featured pink “Barbie” movie-themed windows resembling a doll box/packaging and promoting the movie’s release.
Ulta Beauty tied in to the “Barbie” movie with a sweepstakes, pop-up events and multiple licensed exclusives, including a weeklong launch window for a limited-edition Barbie The Movie collection from L’Oreal’s NYX Professional Makeup. In stores, bright pink floorstands promoted the film’s release and promised that the collection offers “dream artistry for every Barbie and Ken.” Racks positioned alongside the NYX floorstands stocked additional Barbie products from brands, including Farouk Systems International’s CHI, Truly Beauty and Hally. Window posters also spotlighted the movie tie-ins.
Target leveraged the “Barbie” movie via an interactive online brand shop. The retailer launched a dedicated character shop that spotlighted Barbie-inspired products (some exclusive) — including those from Wella’s OPI, Unilever’s Suave and Mattel — across categories in a virtual Barbie dreamhouse. Users could click on different product categories in the house to browse related SKUs. The page also offered other activities, including a link to a Barbie selfie generator. Target also launched a dedicated Trends shop spotlighting Barbiecore fashion.
7-Eleven tapped into nostalgia by partnering with Bandai Namco’s “Pac-Man” video game franchise on a sweepstakes that ran from Feb. 22 through May 23 and awarded a slew of prizes, including a custom retailer-branded Pac-Man arcade machine. Loyalty members could enter by purchasing a qualifying product from select brands (e.g., Hershey Co.’s Reese’s or 7-Select). The sweepstakes was heavily promoted in stores. 7-Eleven also temporarily renamed some of its proprietary drinks for Pac-Man’s ghost antagonists.
Cosmetics brand ColourPop brought a line of licensed Naruto (a Japanese manga series) products exclusively to Ulta Beauty in July as part of an ongoing partnership with the retailer. Some SKUs even sold out through both Ulta and ColourPop. In stores, the line was stocked on a table display, while a home page banner ad on ColourPop.com and posts across the brand’s social media accounts supported the launch.
The Walt Disney Co. launched an exclusive Disney100 collection at PetSmart stores and on the retailer’s website in May as part of its 100th anniversary with retail collaborations. The line featured 26 toys for cats and dogs, which were merchandised in stores on endcaps encouraging shoppers to “share Disney fun with your dog” or offering “Disney favorites for your cat.”
Popular video game Angry Birds debuted its first themed retail cafe in New York, in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens, in July. The 3,300-square-foot store concept, iSwii by Angry Birds Retail Cafe, is located in the food court area within the Tangram retail center. The place offers playful desserts, bubble teas, gaming stations, a retail section and interactive activities geared toward kids and families.
Boxed Water is Better rolled out “Jurassic World”-inspired cartons of its sustainably packaged water to grocery retailers across the U.S. and its brand website. In April, Meijer became the first grocer to offer the cartons, which comprised six special cartons depicting “fan-favorite” dinosaurs from the Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment blockbuster franchise, including T. rex, Stegosaurus and Blue (the famous Velociraptor).
Walmart supported the rollout of Mondelez International’s limited-edition product collaboration with Nintendo’s “Super Mario” game franchise and Oreo. Walmart promoted the “Oreo x Super Mario” cookie packages, which feature characters from the game, within Walmart.com using a banner ad inviting shoppers to “Find All 16 Super Mario Designs” and linking to the product details page.
