Airheads puts TikTok trend to the test with muscle-fueled Shake Factory

Dive Brief:

Airheads is encouraging consumers to test out a new way of eating its candy through an “Airheads Shake Factory” pop-up event, per a press release. The move follows a viral TikTok claiming that the candy tastes better after being shaken into a new shape.
The Shake Factory event will be held on June 21 from 2 to 7 p.m. PT at Muscle Beach Gym in Venice Beach, California, and will feature an assembly line of bodybuilders who will be shaking the candy into a smaller, pillow-like form, a process that has proven arduous.
Event attendees can also participate in “shake offs” to win prizes throughout the day. The move builds on the brand’s recently launched #AirheadsChallenge on social media and makes it one of the latest to center its marketing around viral TikTok moments.

Dive Insight:

Popular candy Airheads, made by Perfetti Van Melle, is looking to capitalize on its social media virality, a move that has become increasingly popular as platforms like TikTok maintain a stronghold over consumers, namely Gen Z. Other major players have done the same, like Ocean Spray and Chipotle, the latter which introduced a new menu item based off of a TikTok creation.

The effort by Airheads is inspired by a TikTok post by popular creator Jordan Howlett, who details a less conventional approach to eating the candy that entails shaking it until it's a fraction of the size of its traditionally flat form. The post has received over 1 million likes and many have attempted it for themselves, prompting Airheads to launch its #AirheadsChallenge, which has since generated millions of views to date, per the release.

Now, the candymaker is taking it a step further with the Airheads Shake Factory, a playful nod to the intense effort needed to actually shrink the candy. Bodybuilders at Muscle Beach Gym will line up to shake the candy for fans, while event-goers will be encouraged to take part in a challenge to see who can shake the candy into the smallest shape within a minute. A leaderboard will rank the day’s best shakers and prizes will be awarded.

Airheads has often been light-hearted in its marketing, the latest effort no different. In 2021, the brand launched a digital video campaign toying with the idea of hitting the “skip ad” button to make real-life moments more playful. The same year, the brand nodded to National Fried Chicken Day with the creation of a limited-run chicken sandwich featuring a bun made from Airheads Xtremes Belts.