Astrology’s Burgeoning Relationship With The Grocery World

Nancy Reagan relied on one, as did George W. Bush, Winston Churchill and FDR – celebs including Mae West, George Clooney, Cameron Diaz and Maria Shriver all did as well. Albert Einstein, well regarded as one of the most famous scientists of all time loved the teachings of this ancient belief system.

And now, it appears, so does Proctor & Gamble. The team that leads Febreeze has teamed up with celebrity astrologer Aliza Kelly to develop and launch the CARstrology Collection – a collection designed to match your astrological sign to your car’s air freshener. Seriously.

So, if you happen to be a Taurus, who is known for sophisticated palates and a deep reverence for the finer things in life, your CARstrology fragrance is ”lush”. Febreeze describes that fragrance as having a sweet vanilla scent with perfectly paired notes of melon, apple & musk.

What’s your sign – and would you buy a car freshener based on your astrological sign?

And what happens if you and your partner are in the car together and you have different signs? And what about the kids? Are they different signs as well?

While this strategy is certainly on-target with the latest trend of personalization, I just have to wonder if anyone realized that all too often there are multiple people in the same car? Could a particular fragrance promote ill will? Or prompt arguments when a fragrance is just the opposite of another passenger’s sign profile?

On Febreeze’s social media channels they are promoting CARstrology with a sweepstakes to give away 480 Zodiac specific keepsake boxes along with a TV, streaming, YouTube, radio and gaming app campaign to promote the product and concept. 480 giveaways doesn’t seem like the well-proven P&G success model where for generations their brands’ key to owning market share was to send a sample of their products – which most times – outperformed the competition, to every household in the US. Almost overnight this strategy propelled them to be number one in their categories.

I’m an Aires – yes, a fire sign – and my CARstrology scent is called CAR Ember. Seriously? They say it is an invigorating blend of mandarin and amber melds with the surprising scent of lava.

I’ll take a pass. But, P&G is not the only company tying its success to the stars.

McDonald’s and Taco Bell are just two of the brands that seem to think that marketing for or against Mercury Retrograde can be big business. Mercury retrograde is an optical illusion which means it looks as if the planet is moving backwards from our view here on earth. Astrologers believe that during this perceived backwards motion, technology and communication could get disrupted, putting a damper on anyone’s mood. What does this have to do with fast food?

To “celebrate,” McDonald’s offered a McChicken or McDouble with the purchase of a medium fries exclusively in the McDonald’s App on May 10 and 11, the second retrograde in 2022 takes place May 10 thru June 3. McDonald’s is partnering with TikTok tarot reader Madam Adam for a “McDonald’s-inspired tarot reading,” Madam Adam, who is a guy by the way, has 1.5 million followers on TikTok and calls himself TikTok’s Tough Love Tarot Reader and self-care enthusiast. On his website you can book a tarot reading for $50 – for a business it’ll set you back $350.

What’s very odd about this partnership with McDonald’s is that his TikTok readings are not family friendly at all – in fact just about every other sentence is an F-bomb in the few episodes I watched. Hardly, in my opinion, the image that McDonald’s has tried so hard to nurture and build since it started in 1955. What were they thinking? Or is it their new strategy to attract a new audience? I’m not sure that’s going to work – but I am sure that it is going to turn off a lot of parents who buy those 1 billion Happy Meals every year across the globe.

Del Taco has been running a Mercury retrograde special since January, the first 2022 retrograde ran from January 14-February 3^rd, and will be running a different and new one for each retrograde cycle. For this one – mid May to early June the special is a free chicken cheddar roller with any $3 purchase on its app.

Perhaps both chains need to look into a crystal ball and refocus their marketing and dollars towards the quality, taste and healthfulness of their foods. Jeanne Dixon, where are you when we need you?