Starbucks and Samsung launch new branded merch

Samsung and Starbucks South Korea have joined forces to create a new look for  the Galaxy S22 line up and the Galaxy Buds 2. As part of the collaboration, Starbucks related designs will be incorporated into the Samsung products. For example, one eye catching merchandise is the latte art buds case where the Galaxy Buds 2 are topped by a Starbucks latte art. According to Starbucks South Korea, all of the merchandise is made using eco-friendly materials.

According to Samsung, it has always aspired to develop a simple and flat form that harmonises technology and design without exposing the boundary between them in its Galaxy S series. This is not the first time Samsung has collaborated with Starbucks South Korea. In 2018, Starbucks launched voice recognition ordering in South Korea by integrating with Bixby, Samsung’s intelligent assistant. The features are an extension of Starbucks Siren Order, the company’s mobile order and pay technology, which allows customers in South Korea to order and pay for their purchases before arriving at their store.

Co-branding is not an uncommon marketing tactic taken by brands these days. In a previous article, experts from the branding industry told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, that co-branding comes in many shapes and sizes, and can also be used to reflect common interest and values. It can also be used to enhance and differentiate service experience or create new levels of consumer engagement, loyalty and community to strategically dominate business sectors. Moreover, such collaborations can serve as a testing phase to see if it works and if it does, a new product range may be born and further developed.

Just last week, Samsung Electronics debuted Make STRANGER Nights Epic, a short film that leverages the advanced Nightography camera features of the Galaxy S22 Ultra to pay homage to the popular Netflix series Stranger Things. The Nightography camera features are improvements to its existing night mode features.  The video is part of Samsung’s ongoing partnership with Netflix and is available to view on Samsung’s social channels, arriving just as season four of Stranger Things dropped on the streaming platform. 

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