How Cava's Tie-up With Emma Chamberlain Created a Bestseller

Emma Chamberlain was making a charcuterie board in a TikTok video. It wouldn't normally be of concern for Mediterranean fast casual chain Cava, until a tub of Cava spicy hummus entered the frame. Chamberlain's snack was treasure for Cava, who seized on the opportunity to collaborate with the Gen Z superstar. “We as a group sat and really thought, 'This is big.' How can we engage with Emma?” said Cava’s senior vice president of brand and marketing, Anna Faktorovich, who said the video came to the brand's attention as a result of an "eagle-eyed" sighting from the friend of someone on Cava's social team. “Our brilliantly social community manager said, 'I’ll just comment on her Instagram account' and she responded.” Several months later, the cheeky exchange led to what the company said is the biggest campaign in its history and its first campaign with a major creator. The collaboration is an example of the power of influencer marketing to shape brand identity. Advertisers are eager to tap into this, with U.S. influencer marketing spend expected to grow 12.2% to over $4 billion in 2022, per eMarketer. Setting a record for app downloads Limited edition Emma’s Fire Bowl and Emma’s Spicy Snack sold at Cava from April 4 through April 26, both incorporating Emma’s favorite spicy hummus (which had previously only been available as a grocery item). Emma’s Fire Bowl became the best-selling vegetarian bowl, a spokesperson said, but wouldn’t share figures. The partnership’s launch day generated the highest traffic on digital platforms in the company’s history; specifically Cava’s webpage saw a 37% uptick in traffic compared to the 30-day average. The launch day also set a record for app downloads—50% above the company’s 30-day average—until Cava bested itself nine days later on April 13. In excess of 80% of social media users wouldn’t care if brands disappeared off social platforms, according to Sarah Ivey, chief strategy officer at Havas Media Group. “We appreciate and value how important that emotional connection [between creators and their fans] is because it’s very difficult,” she added. Finding the brand voice The Emma Chamberlain campaign came at a time when the restaurant chain was working to find its voice, Faktorovich said. Using creators and celebrities as a vehicle for brand identity can be effective, so long as it doesn’t feel forced, said executive vice president of brand and agency partnerships at entertainment marketing agency Burns Entertainment, Courtney Worthman. “People will get to know your brand through people they already feel they know,” Worthman said. The fact that Chamberlain already liked the brand when she wasn’t paid to was even more seamless. Still, all partnerships include the risk of a brand giving up control, especially when the celebrity or creator is more well-known than the brand itself. “The brand has to risk partnering with someone who is just a human,” Worthman said. Handling a social stepback Cava experienced the unpredictability of working with talent first hand when months before the partnership launched, Chamberlain deleted her TikTok and said she was taking an indefinite break from YouTube, two of the creator’s main channels, citing mental health reasons. Chamberlain still maintains an Instagram account. “It was a major pivot,” Faktorovich said. “We had to quickly come up with ways to bring Emma back to YouTube.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L54mEAl_IoA Cava brought Chamberlain onto the YouTube channel of Claire Saffitz, a former Bon Appétit editor with YouTube cooking show—and who Chamberlain is a big fan of. Together, the two partnered for a video where they made breadsticks to dip in Cava’s spicy hummus. “We promoted the partnership on my podcast and I got to make a video with one of my favorite chefs, Claire Saffitz,” Chamberlain told Adweek. “Cava was very understanding and worked with me as they developed the strategy for our collaboration. They respected the boundaries I set for my mental health.”

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How Food Brand Cava's Partnership With Emma Chamberlain Created a Best Seller

Cava used social listening and a Gen Z star to launch the biggest campaign in the restaurant's history

Catherine Perloff

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Catherine Perloff