The Marketing Mixtape: Cozy, Connected and Culture-Forward (November 11 to 17, 2025)
Pizza Hut’s Triple Treat Box, McDonald’s x BTS TinyTAN, Home Depot, Starbucks’ Bearista cup and Rhode at Sephora: the campaigns of November 11 to 17, 2025.
Holiday marketing this week ran on fandom and warmth. McDonald’s leaned on BTS collectibles, Starbucks turned a cup into a frenzy and Home Depot told the story of the farmers behind its trees.
About the Mixtape
The Marketing Mixtape is our running commentary on campaigns worth studying. The brands featured are not The Vibe Curator co. clients. We highlight them because the strategy behind the work is worth learning from.
The campaigns
Pizza Hut makes gifting seamless with its Triple Treat Box campaign, mixing QR-game packaging, NFL talent, and pop-up parties for a fun, value-first solution to holiday chaos.
McDonald’s channels K-pop mania, bringing BTS TinyTAN collectible figures to Happy Meals in more than 60 countries, with a QR code that unlocks a digital play experience (The Straits Times). Music fandom is the new global language of mass marketing.
Home Depot elevates the real heroes, its tree farmers, in a campaign about family, heritage, and local care, humanizing the retail experience with every emotional frame. Starbucks leans on pastel animation and the Bearista cup phenomenon, creating viral moments that bridge nostalgia and #LimitedEdition obsession everywhere from Tokyo to TikTok.
Finally, Rhode’s Sephora debut turns Hailey Bieber’s digital beauty brand into a mass-market sensation, using UGC, in-store events, and community feedback to lead a new era of influencer-born, no-fuss beauty.
The takeaway
Across all corners of retail and pop, this week’s mixtape proves that smart brands don’t just join the culture. They create it, one joyful, fan-driven moment at a time.
Go deeper
Want the full playbook behind this? Read Brand Collaboration Examples: 12 Partnerships and What Small Brands Can Learn. 12 recent brand collaboration examples, from Gap x KATSEYE and Rare Beauty x Tajín to Pop-Tarts x Liquid Death, and the lessons small brands can use.
Keep reading
Brand Collaboration Examples: 12 Partnerships and What Small Brands Can Learn 12 recent brand collaboration examples, from Gap x KATSEYE and Rare Beauty x Tajín to Pop-Tarts x Liquid Death, and the lessons small brands can use.
Experiential Marketing for Small Brands: 12 Ideas That Build Loyalty 12 affordable experiential marketing ideas for small brands, from ritual partnerships to pop-ups, AR and gamified loyalty, plus 2026 data and how to measure.
How to Market to Gen Z in 2027: What Actually Builds Loyalty How to market to Gen Z in 2027: what the latest research says about discovery, trust, AI content and loyalty, plus a practical playbook for small brands.
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Erika Gardner, Founder and Chief Strategist, The Vibe Curator co.
Erika Gardner founded The Vibe Curator co. in 2016. She leads brand strategy, websites, email and SMS, and fractional CMO work for growing brands from offices in Houston and Atlanta.
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