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

One step at a time: Caterpillar drops limited-edition 100th anniversary boot collection

Caterpillar Inc., the legendary American construction equipment manufacturing firm, turns 100 this year. To mark the occasion, the brand’s Cat footwear division — which markets items produced by Wolverine under a long-standing licensing deal — has dropped a new line of limited-edition boots. The Centennial capsule collection features three unique designs, each celebrating Caterpillar’s role in a major engineering achievement from the past century. The Golden Gate Bridge edition boot, for example, features gold hardware and a structural “cable system” reinforcement around the eyelets. The Moon Landing version has a Velcro upper strap, bungee lacing and a dusty colorway. And the Continental Channel Tunnel iteration uses a waterproof shell with an illuminated insole and a functional headlamp on the tongue. The collection is on sale now at catfootwear.com, with all three designs priced at $149.95.

See also: “BÉIS to promote new Utility Collection with national park pop-ups,” from the Aug. 9, 2024 edition of this column.

More footwear launches:

Pampered Chef’s new DTC subscription box offering caters to kids

Kitchenware mainstay Pampered Chef just launched its first youth-oriented offering, Kids Club, a subscription box designed for children ages 6-12. The Berkshire Hathaway–owned company says this new DTC play comes from extensive market research, including months of interviews and surveys with moms and hands-on testing with kids. Each seasonal box contains three simple recipes (incorporating a seasoning, which is included), step-by-step instructions, a kitchen product, an achievement pin and a QR code to access more culinary resources online. (Pampered Chef is foregrounding the educational value in its marketing, specifying that the recipe cards feature “STEM callouts” that promote “learning along with the fun.”) The inaugural “Dough Much Fun Box” — with a base recipe for quick-rise dough, pizza pockets and churro beignets— is available now for $35 at Pamperedchef.com.

Stat of the week: 13

The number of consecutive years Walmart has topped the Fortune Global 500, earning the most revenue of any corporation worldwide in 2024. The annual ranking, released on Monday, shows Amazon, UnitedHealth Group, Apple and CVS Health rounding out the top five spots.

Read more: This week’s roundup of marketing, media and industry statistics from Quad.

Hot Wheels enters high fashion in capsule collection with Parisian brand Maje

The toy aisle is no stranger to mass-market licensing, but it rarely intersects with the world of luxury fashion. That high/low novelty underpins the Hot Wheels x Maje collection, a new spring/summer capsule interpreting the former’s kitschy, high-octane aesthetic with the latter’s refined Parisian sensibilities. The nine-piece drop features sharp pleating and detailed embroidery, incorporating contemporary cropped and boxy silhouettes. Maje has made the most of Hot Wheels nostalgic cache and pop culture credibility, while the collab provides inroads to younger, affluent consumers for Mattel. (To wit, the collection’s entry point is a $115 baseball cap, positioned alongside a $450 cardigan and $560 denim jacket.) The full Hot Wheels x Maje is available now online.

Previously: “Hot Wheels’ new Challenge Accepted brand platform encourages parents to allow children to make mistakes,” from the Oct. 18, 2024 edition of this column.

More brand collabs and partnerships:

TJ Maxx is supporting “everyday women” through a new sponsorship program

As part of its Maxx You Project, dedicated to “helping women pursue their most authentic lives,” TJ Maxx just announced the launch of a new initiative that offers sponsorships in support of everyday women, per a brand announcement. You Sponsored by TJ Maxx, as the initiative is called, is offering 10 women, who it’s calling “True Originals,” sponsorship deals designed to “amplify their unique voices and fuel their next moves” by providing support in three areas: opportunity, connections and visibility. Each sponsor will receive $20,000 to advance their personal or professional passion, plus a one-on-one with a “co-sponsor” to help fuel their ambitions and expand their network. Co-sponsors include rugby player Ilona Maher, beauty influencer Jen Atkin, designer and stylist Carly Cushnie, pianist Chloe Flower, and actress and singer Renée Elise Goldsberry. Through June 20, women can apply for a You Sponsorship by filling out a short questionnaire about their True Original story and sharing what they’d do with their sponsorship.

Previously: “TJ Maxx partners with Mandy Moore to encourage women to buck labels and ‘Claim Your And,’” from the June 28, 2024 edition of The Week in Retail.

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