Welcome to The Week in Commerce Marketing — Retail, E-commerce and DTC, a weekly roundup for marketers from Quad Insights.

Aldi to host pop-up charcuterie experience in Chicago

Aldi just announced an upcoming activation designed to provide some charcuterie inspiration just in time for the holidays. Open Dec. 4-5 at Loft on Lake in Chicago (1366 W. Lake Street), the Aldi Charcuterie Chalet will feature a cozy, ski-lodge vibe with a curated selection of food and beverage offerings, as well as an interactive photo booth and opportunities to create personalized engraved gifts. Guests can sample a mix of themed charcuterie boards, including the Aldi $50 Board, Holiday Sweater Board, Windy City Board, Sweets Board, Aldi Fresh Board and more. Free tickets to the Aldi Charcuterie Chalet are now available on a first-come, first-served basis at ALDICharcuterieChalet.eventbrite.com. For those unable to make it to the IRL event, Aldi and DoorDash are making it easy to recreate these boards at home with a landing page for all the products on DoorDash’s website.

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More brand activations:

Stat of the week: 28%

Amazon holiday campaign highlights real customer reviews read by “real serious actor” Adam Driver

Amazon just debuted a dryly humorous product-focused holiday campaign featuring a “real serious actor” offering dramatic readings of real customer reviews, Marketing Dive’s Chris Kelly reports. Starring Adam Driver, the campaign will include 10 different ads highlighting a range of products, with the first three installments featuring reviews of a Dutch oven, a plush seal and a banana slicer. In the ads, “a suited Driver sits on a leather chair in front of a Christmas tree,” surrounded by “Amazon boxes and a pianist playing a version of ‘O Tannenbaum,’” Kelly notes. Timed to the e-commerce giant’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales events, the campaign is running across owned and paid social, as well as premium online video.

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More notable campaigns and promotions:

Quote of the week:

“We think about it as humanist design — it is about bringing that softness and warmth, to remove hard edges, soften the experiences, embrace white space and give hierarchy its rightful place. … This is a 30-year-old company next year. It’s important we don’t move all the furniture around at once and create chaos.”
EBay Senior Director of Design Tyler Moore speaking with Fast Company’s Mark Wilson about the e-commerce platform’s recent website redesign

Previously: “EBay launches live, shoppable events via first-ever Pre-Loved Fashion Week,” from the Aug. 30 edition of this column.

Stanley 1913 and Leo Messi release cobranded collection

Drinkware brand Stanley 1913 just announced a partnership with soccer (football) superstar Lionel Messi on a cobranded collection. The Messi x Stanley 1913 collection features “performance-based, built-for-life innovations” in the exclusive Messi GOAT Pink colorway, including the Quencher ProTour Flip Straw Tumbler, High Precision Flow Mate System, Classic Mate Mug and more. Several of the pieces feature Messi’s mantra, “Start early, stay late,” etched on them. The new line — part of a multiyear partnership between the brand and Messi — will be available starting Dec. 3 at Stanley1913.com, with select products also for sale in-store and online at Dick’s Sporting Goods. Stanley will celebrate the launch with a series of immersive experiences Dec. 3-8 in Miami, where Messi captains the Major League Soccer club Inter Miami.

More brand collabs and partnerships: