In a press release today, fast casual restaurant chain Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG -1.34%) and cosmetics and personal care company e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (ELF -6.43%) revealed their plans for a rather unusual collaboration. e.l.f. is planning the release of a beauty collection based on Chipotle's food and branding, to include both cosmetics and accessories, entitled the "e.l.f. x Chipotle collection."
"There is nothing tastier or prettier than the combination of burritos and makeup," according to e.l.f.'s Chief Marketing Officer Kory Marchisotto, who added that the two companies "share the same renegade spirit." Both enterprises use popular contemporary approaches to make their products more appealing to consumers, including Chipotle's use of "responsibly raised food" and e.l.f.'s focus on picking cruelty-free, vegan ingredients.
Image source: e.l.f. Beauty, Chipotle Mexican Grill.
Some of the planned items in the collection include a cosmetics bag made to resemble a Chipotle tortilla chip bag, facial sponges made to resemble avocados to evoke guacamole, and an eyeshadow assortment with colors based on pinto beans, lettuce, various types of salsa, and brown rice, among other Chipotle ingredients.
Chipotle's digital marketing VP Tressie Lieberman points out that a previous collaborative "launch" made with e.l.f. in early 2020 sold out entirely within four minutes of it being made available for sale.
e.l.f.'s stock has soared after two years of continuous growth, while its market share rose from approximately 5% to 6% between the start of 2020 and 2021. The company registered 10% year-over-year sales gains in December, suggesting its run of success isn't faltering yet despite winter and COVID-19.
For its part, Chipotle also enjoyed a profitable quarter, though its stock price has far outstripped its revenue gains. Both stocks were down several percentage points at the close of trading today.
