The retail world looks different now and there's a lot of uncertainty. Instead of highlighting the absurd products we normally do, we're looking instead at some of the things in the industry that made us smile.
This week, Boy Smells released a new collection for Pride month, a Virginia beer company announced plans to hire for a surprising new role and Louis Vuitton expanded its product portfolio again.
This, and more, in this week's retail therapy.
Boy Smells launches Pride collection
June kicked off Pride month, and though it may look a little different this year with parades moving online, many brands have released special collections to help consumers celebrate Pride wherever they are.
Candle brand Boy Smells, for one, recently released its Pride collection, which features six different candles. The products, ranging in a rainbow of colors, each come with a unique scent that appears to blur the lines of gendered scents. That's right, tobacco dances with rose and apricot, while crystallized ginger and vanilla pair with musk.
The products can be purchased individually or as a set — the "Bundle of Pride" — which the company describes as "A genderful cocktail of the entire PRIDE collection."
While the scents sound truly amazing, the best part of this collection may be the fact that Boy Smells vowed that all purchases will contribute toward a $26,500 minimum donation to The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ+ young people.
Other brands like Nike, Converse, Bonobos and Sephora have also released collections to celebrate Pride and have made donations to various organizations, including Campus Pride, the National Gay Basketball Association, the Callen-Lorde Community Health Center and Out MetroWest.
Virginia brewery looks to fill a new role
Devil's Backbone brewery located in Roseland, Virginia, and nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, announced it's hiring for a new position: Chief Hiking Officer. The Anheuser-Busch owned company said it will pay someone to hike the Appalachian Trail next year.
Devil's Backbone will outfit the winner of this role with gear, fly them to the start of the trail, host events just off the trail and provide them with a $20,000 stipend.
"Devils Backbone is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, just a few miles from the Appalachian Trail, so we can get our fill of fresh air any time. But folks always tell us how they wish they had the time to trek the AT from Georgia to Maine," the company said. "So, why couldn't we sponsor one lucky hiker and help them check 'conquer the AT' off their bucket list?"
The company has opened applications for the 2021 role and is asking interested applicants to submit a one-minute long video explaining why they're the best candidate for the job. The contest is unfortunately only open to residents living in Washington, D.C., Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia or West Virginia. But for everyone else, if you wanted to create your own beer-filled hiking experience, we don't think anyone would be opposed.
Louis Vuitton goes all-in on latest product drop
Louis Vuitton, which has designed classic pieces like the Neverfull, has also released some surprising products over the years. The luxury retailer has ventured beyond fine leather goods and into new categories with product drops like wireless earbuds, ping pong paddles, a volleyball and even a branded Jenga set.
Well, the French fashion house is at it again, betting all of its chips on arguably the most ridiculous product yet: a poker set. The product rings in at a cool $24,000, which is about $23,950 more than we'd ever spend on a game where we'd inevitably lose even more money. The poker set includes a lock-closure case which features the iconic LV monogram.
But luxury brands entering into "everyday" categories is a trend that's picked up as of late. Chanel has released everything from a branded skateboard to a $2,300 basketball, and Tiffany in 2017 rolled out a line that included a $300 yo-yo and a $9,000 ball of yarn.
Who knew the cost of ridiculousness was so steep?
