Image via LUSH
Since my college days of using henna to dye my hair red, I’ve been a big fan of the beauty brand Lush. If you’re not familiar, they make handmade, colorful bath bombs, soaps, and other all natural vegan beauty products.
A quick peek into my house reveals that this brand is an ongoing part of my so-called beauty routine, from my shampoo to my moisturizer. But lately, Lush has caught my eye for a completely different reason. This brand I once thought of as part of my nature girlie tendencies has gone… full geek.
What Is LUSH Doing in The Swamp?
It began with an email about a Bridgerton-themed line. Some bath bombs and soaps inspired by the popular Netflix series. Interesting, but nothing too out of character for a brand that loves a good bee-shaped body scrub. (It’s called Scrubee and, yes, I have one).
Then, I got the Shrek email. Lush cheerfully invited me to head to the swamp to check out the latest and greatest in ogre-themed bath, shower, and body products. That link, I had to click.
The line includes such wonders as Grass shower gel in a bright Shrek green and a Dragon’s Egg bath bomb. It also highlights longstanding products like the Herbalism face scrub you’ll find in my bathroom at any given moment. Which, now that you mention it, does kind of give off Shrek vibes.
At this point, I started wondering just what was going on with the brand I thought I knew and understood. And more to the point, I was pretty sure I liked it?
The Collabs Keep Coming and They Don’t Stop Coming
What I thought was an interesting departure from the usual vibes of the brand seems like it may be a whole new direction.
Since the Shrek line, we’ve seen a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles collab from the beauty brand with bath bombs modeled after the Turtles themselves. I don’t know how to feel about the green Peace, Love, and Pizza bath bomb which is both enticing as a pizza lover and concerning to think about as a bath product.
Following up on the TMNT collab, Lush has flooded my inbox with Minecraft-themed bath and beauty products. Even I, who have never played Minecraft, recognize the blocks-turned-bath bombs in that line. Yes, it includes a Creeper and a Minecraft chest product holder to put your goodies in.
For a brand that I thought belonged squarely in the non-gaming self-care corner of my life, LUSH is making me second-guess that separation.
As someone who received dragon’s egg soap with D&D dice inside them as a gift, I should’ve known these collaborations could happen. I just… didn’t expect them from this particular brand.
What’s Next, LUSH?
I’ve gone from relying on the same staple products from this brand to eagerly anticipating their marketing emails to see what nerdy collab they cook up next.
Of course, I’m sure that’s the point. It’s not just Lush who seems to be taking advantage of the fact that so many geeky hobbies are mainstream these days. I’ve seen a bakery slinging Pikachu-shaped macarons and a rug company getting in on the Bridgerton collab game.
I’m not entirely sure how to feel about this direction of big-name collabs with popular IPs from unexpected brands. My cynical side sees it as a marketing gimmick, an attempt to go viral, garnering attention from the sheer unexpectedness of it all.
There’s also the fact that plenty of small, independent creators have been doing the bath and beauty for nerds thing for years, so big brands like Lush are hopping on an ongoing trend. It only feels new because you used to need to know where to look, and suddenly, it’s in my inbox with my regular old big brand marketing emails.
In some ways, unexpected bigger brands grabbing onto games like Minecraft and Final Fantasy feels like the gaming version of the Taco Bell Cheez-It Crunchwrap. Two things that are generally loved and don’t necessarily belong together, but then again, why not? For now, I’ve got my eye on this trend, wondering what we’re going to see next.
Looking for more unexpected collabs? How about the time Reese Witherspoon’s book club had an event at Taco Bell? Or check out this set of notebooks pretending to be a mimic.
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