Few brand collabs have the power to surprise in the age of Peeps-flavored Pepsi and Tesla tequila, but the partnership between Chipotle Mexican Grill and e.l.f. Cosmetics that first flourished last year proved to be a headline-making exception.
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Courtesy of New York's Day One Agency—charged with Chipotle’s social and cultural creative duties for the past four years—the idea to combine a makeup brand with a Mexican food chain arose after noticing that Chipotle and e.l.f. were two of the hottest brands on TikTok. The surprise pairing made their debut in May 2020 with a limited-edition cosmetics collection that sold out in minutes, proving the collaboration’s staying power among young, social-savvy consumers.
In March of this year, the brands doubled down on their relationship with an eyeshadow palette of burrito-inspired colors along with a host of other makeup products, sold by both brands on their websites and on virtual shopping platform NTWRK. And while the cruelty-free cosmetics collection was the star of the duo’s most recent promotional streak, Chipotle also got in on the custom product action, launching a vegan “Eyes. Chips. Face. Bowl.” that was available to patrons earlier this year.