Talk about a marketing blitz this past weekend.
Co-branding, social media stars, limited edition drops and giveaways filled out the prom afterparty hosted by Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG). It was the chain’s latest digitally-savvy attempt at staying front and center for a good chunk of its younger consumer base.
Orange County’s No. 2 largest restaurant operator on Saturday played presenting sponsor to Teen Vogue’s star-studded virtual prom, prior to hosting a virtual afterparty immediately following.
Bringing some semblance of “normalcy” to students who have had to adhere to stay-at-home orders the past two months is behind the chain’s efforts, it said.
Chipotle’s after party included social media star David Dobrik (who touts 17.2 million YouTube followers), 10,000 food giveaways, special Instagram and Snapchat filters and special products. Dobrik also took to Instagram Live to chat with students.
The big prize of the evening was entry to win a $25,000 scholarship from Chipotle by following the Chipotle Afterparty Instagram handle, which had already racked up over 71,000 followers by early last week.
Chipotle also linked with Oakland-based makeup brand e.l.f. Cosmetics (NYSE: ELF) for a makeup palette that took inspiration from the Chipotle burrito; glitter in a nod to the foil, a primer in a reference to sour cream and so on. To drum up buzz for the weekend’s events, a limited number of the makeup sets—100 to be exact—were sold May 14 through the Chipotle Afterparty Instagram page, in addition to e.l.f.’s own site just ahead of the virtual events.
For the crafty, floral artist Sophie Parker, who has nearly 38,000 Instagram followers, was enlisted to do a Teen Vogue Instagram Stories DIY on how to make corsages and boutonnieres from foil.
