It's been another weird week in retail. Slack sought life offline, Home Depot won Halloween and Costco provided us with the fuel needed for the next three months.
This, and more, in this week's retail therapy.
Slack, Cole Haan step offline together
You know how last week we said Estée Lauder teaming up with NASA to send a face serum to space was the ultimate partnership of 2020? We may have spoken too soon.
This week, the business communication platform Slack partnered with Cole Haan for a footwear collection. (*rubs temples*)
But Slack really has been the unsung hero for many in 2020, acting as the very glue holding many companies together as they try to navigate this uncertain year when much of the workforce is remote. The platform has a good chance of having its name invoked at the Thanksgiving table.
Slack shoes though? The collection is part of Cole Haan's Generation ZERØGRAND style of footwear, which touts itself as one of the lightest shoe options available. With the pandemic heightening demand for more casual and comfortable apparel, the shoes may actually land with consumers.
"Slack's innovative capabilities have proven to be a valuable tool and asset for our company," David Maddocks, brand president of Cole Haan, said in a statement. "Our teams can communicate around the world as we continue to revolutionize performance lifestyle products that transition from work to workout to weekend — even if that's happening wherever you might be right now."
The shoes, which are available online and in select stores, retail for $120 and come with four different accent colors to choose from: blue, red, lemon and green.
It's ridiculous, but it may be so ridiculous that it works.
The 12-foot Home Depot product that took over Halloween
With the air getting a bit crisper and the spooky season approaching, some consumers have been busy decorating to show their spirit. Some pumpkins on the porch (maybe even a couple decorative gourds?), a witch's broom displayed, some fake spider webs draped over the railings.
But for those looking beyond the traditional elements, The Home Depot unveiled just the thing. Enter: a 12-foot-tall skeleton.
Because if there was ever a year to reveal to your neighbors that you're really freaking into Halloween, 2020 is as good as any.
Why my neighbors already have a giant skeleton in their front yard in september pic.twitter.com/3SdVnb4G9C
— EX Falchion (@ExFalchion) September 22, 2020
According to the home improvement retailer's website, the product, which retails for $299, is "designed for indoor or outdoor use." INDOOR?
But thanks to Home Depot's AR technology, consumers can visualize what a 12-foot skeleton would look like in their one-bedroom apartments before shelling out the cash.
perfect pic.twitter.com/md49iO3f9d
— patrick wells (@pwells) September 30, 2020
The product has become so popular that it's begun making appearances in other brands' social channels, including Budweiser, 1-800-Contacts and Impossible Foods.
Costco aims to make the elongated holiday season more bearable
Now that you've had your 10 seconds of Halloween fun, let's roll out the giant inflatable lawn snow globe because the holiday season has officially begun.
Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy and others have announced sales events for next week in order to elongate the shopping season to help stem crowds and keep up with increased online demand.
But if the retail giants are going to force us to kick off our holiday shopping when the leaves have barely begun to change, we're at least going to have a jolly good time doing it.
And this is where Costco's 1.75 liters of spiked eggnog comes in.
For $9.99, the club retailer blessed us all with the very fuel needed to get us through a whole extra month of "the most wonderful time of the year."
And if you're a firm believer in not beginning holiday shopping until after Thanksgiving, well, you're going to need a bottle of this to stress drink away your worries of gifts not arriving in time. Don't say we didn't warn you.
