1. A Bridgerton bonanza
One sweet-smelling fandom deserves another. According to Cooper, that’s why Bath & Body Works readily agreed to partner with the belle of the Netflix ball, Bridgerton, for a product collection that debuted ahead of the Season 3 premiere of the Shonda Rhimes-produced hit.
“The intent was to figure out how we could deepen fandom,” he explained, noting how both companies have their dedicated enthusiasts. Cooper indicated that the fan response would even have made the unflappable Eloise Bridgerton gape, with product flying off the shelves and generating over a billion online impressions.
Not surprisingly, the company has also rolled the dice on another Netflix fandom by launching a Stranger Things collection. “Now you can see what a Demogorgon smells like,” Cooper teases.
Both of those experiences provided Cooper with a better sense of the kind of non-traditional entertainment that Bath & Body Works might one day make. “We’re an experiential brand, so how do we help our customers experience what we’re offering in a new and powerful way?” he mused.
And he’s eager to find creative partners to assist in the journey towards what that “new and powerful way” might entail.
“There are production houses that would love a brand check to offset costs,” Cooper said. “But instead of viewing brands as a bank, we should be viewing them as creative partners.”
2. Health matters
If you’re looking for a movie studio to model yourself after, why not the Mouse House? When Soto stepped into his role at Northwell Health—a regional health network that operates in New York state—he ordered up a diagnostic on what’s arguably the most successful entertainment manufacturer in Hollywood history: the Walt Disney Company.
Specifically, he wanted to see how the studio creates the superfans that see Deadpool & Wolverine upwards of ten times in movie theaters or binge Star Wars shows on Disney+ into the wee hours of the morning. It was all part of an initiative to make the Northwell name mean something to the millions of New Yorkers who visit their hospitals and other healthcare facilities.