Goals: Clearly state your marketing goals. What did you strive to achieve using this piece or program? RHC launched a first-of-its-kind collaboration between Shake Shack and luxury home fragrance company, Apotheke candles. Our marketing goals were to drive sales, generate media coverage and social media impressions, and support two New York City born and raised businesses – drawing a direct connection between the city’s food culture by bringing it into peoples’ homes through Apotheke candles. We strived to achieve a new level of cross-promotion never before undertaken by two so unique, juxtaposed companies. Furthermore, we desired to push the boundaries of innovation by creating two new fragrances: Burger in the Park and Shake N Fries. The scientific process to capture the scent of each item was led by leading scent scientists, Givaudan in partnership with Apotheke. After many months of labor identifying and capturing the essence of enjoying two iconic NYC dishes and capturing the scents in candle form, Apotheke launched the candle set with a custom coloring book. Evocative of high end fast food and the sensory experience of enjoying both in Madison Square Park (Shake Shack’s original location), the collaboration ignited the trend of food-themed candles and celebrated two beloved New York enterprises during the pandemic. During the pandemic when people were discouraged from eating out, they were able to experience a taste of NYC’s most iconic treats at home, candles burning.

Results: Which of your original goals did you achieve and how? How did you measure the effectiveness of the piece or campaign? Entrants should provide quantifiable results of their tactics or campaigns. (for example, click through rates or ad equivalency)RHC achieved an ad value equivalency of $3.5m. We generated impressions in every leading food and lifestyle publication and many broadcast segments. The Shake Shack candle collection sold out within two weeks, with many candles selling out on the first day of launch. Sales tripled and the candle continues to generate revenue.

Budget: Please include total budget vs. total actual cost. How much revenue has the piece or campaign generated and how does this compare to your goal? What was the return on investment?The partnership was executed with a 5k budget. Apotheke and Shake Shack collaborated on providing product and sending out media mailers. We hosted a launch event at Apotheke’s factory for media, tastemakers, and friends of the brand and served Shake Shack burgers with custom signed candles by a local artist. Sales tripled in the first week of the partnership with multiple drops selling out.

Objective(s): What problems did the sales, marketing & guest satisfaction, or revenue optimization technology aim to solve?

Innovative use of technology: The extent to which new directions are charted or old challenges are resolved by using the technology in a new way.

Implementation & creativity: How was the technology implemented so that it was easy to use, solved a manpower problem, streamlined a function, or fueled recovery?

Results & Evaluation: How did the technology move the department or business forward to achieve goals, revenue or otherwise?

Goal: How did you demonstrate that you are committed to advancing diversity in your organization through your marketing?

Initiatives: Describe the promotion. What was your organization’s message and how does it foster diversity? How was the target audience channel developed/pursued?

Results: Please describe how your organization was purposeful in advancing diversity through this initiative. Please describe the metrics you used to judge success. What were the forecasted and actual outcomes described in your Key Performance Indicators (KPI)? What impact did the initiative have on your organization and for your customers?

Entry TitleApotheke x Shake Shack Serve up Two New Scents

DivisionPublic Relations/Communications - Innovation

CategoryPublic Relations/Communications