Marketing may not be a math-heavy field, but there sure are a lot of Xs.
From Chili’s x Tecovas to Wicked: For Good x just about any brand you can think of, 2025 was filled to the brim with collabs. It’s no secret that marketers love a crossover moment, but do they always land?
We’re breaking down the best, worst, and downright cringiest brand partnerships we saw this year.
The good
- Chipotle and Wonderskin’s “Lipotle” lip stain may go on green, but the reddish tint it leaves was enough for customers to clamor for it and sell it out for the second year in a row.
- Well, that’s one way to repurpose vinyl seating: Chili’s partnered with cowboy-boot brand Tecovas to sell $345 “Booth Boots,” which were apparently so popular, they’re now reselling on eBay for anywhere from *checks notes* $1,900 to $50,000.
- Glossier partnered with Magnolia Bakery to create a lip balm based on its signature banana pudding. With the addition of a banana-charm keychain, it feels like this helped spur the phone/keys/wallet trend.
- There’s something satisfying about looking at the Haribo gummy-bear Crocs, even if not everyone’s spouse agrees.
- Burger King’s SpongeBob menu only makes sense for a brand that sells burgers—even if they’re not Pretty Patties.
- White Castle teamed up with OxiClean to create a cleanup kit for drive-thru orders, including a “lapkin” and stain-release spray, which deserves points for practicality.
- Bath & Body Works is known for its range of sweet-smelling products, so partnering with Milk Bar, which sells arguably some of the sweetest baked goods on the market, only made sense for its clientele.
- Coffee brand Four Sigmatic sells mushroom-infused coffee, so its partnership with HBO’s fungal zombie apocalypse show The Last of Us on a cordyceps blend really grew on us.
- For the last season of Stranger Things, Benetton released a line of ’80s-inspired clothes that honestly exceeded our expectations of what merch looks like these days, both in quality and subtlety. Here’s to matching a character rather than wearing their face.
The bad
- At this point, we know the name of the game is attention at all costs, but did we really need mac-and-cheese lip balm from Panera and Holler and Glow?
- Similarly, we’re just not sure there’s a need for caffeinated hot sauce, contrary to this year’s latest Taco John’s and 5-Hour Energy collab.
- Erewhon smoothies are all the rage, but if Instagram comments mean anything, the Boka x Erewhon Mint Condition Smile Smoothie was one to skip if you’re not interested in sipping on toothpaste.
- There’s some originality in the Chipotle x Urban Outfitters dorm collection, but ultimately, if we walked into a room and saw that brown bean-bag chair and that green duvet, we’d probably just think the occupant was a Shrek fanatic.
- Ice cream brand Van Leeuwen is no stranger to a weird flavor (remember its Hidden Valley Ranch collab?) and unfortunately for all of us, its lineup now includes “sunscreen” in collaboration with Carnival Cruise Line. While we’re not sure how the coconut flavor tastes, the two brands said they’d release it to the public if it got enough love on social media, and so far, we haven’t seen any updates.
- While there were high hopes for the NikeSkims collab, the combination of mixed reviews and a fizzled roll-out has us wondering whether these two brands are better off consciously uncoupling.
- International Delight created a line of coffee creamers for the Netflix show Love is Blind, but given the contestants’ high divorce rate, we’re not sure if that Wedding Cake flavor tastes very sweet.
- While not exactly a brand collab, we’re counting Sydney Sweeney as her own brand because let’s face it, she kind of is one at this point. And her work with Dr. Squatch on her own bathwater-infused soap was one that made us question a lot of things (and people).
- There were more than 400 Wicked: For Good-themed brand collabs this year, and while some, like Wicked x Build-a-Bear, were certainly fun, we must ask: Was anyone changed for the better after buying Wicked-themed dishwasher pods, or 10 different water bottles?
The ugly
- Hollister’s Taco Bell line promises to take outfits from “mild to fire,” but we’re not sure sweatpants with sauce flavors in the style of the baby-name chalkboard list meme is gonna do all that.
- The $150+ Issey Miyake x Apple iPhone Pocket. Just cut a long sock and call it good.
- While some Stranger Things collabs may have worked for us, others, like the Williams Sonoma spatula, left us wondering: who actually wants that displayed in their kitchen? Or, worse yet, their garage? Owners of the Stranger Things Fiat, please come forward. We have questions.
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