Walmart has launched a “Spicy Summer” promotion that includes a special hot sauce collection and other initiatives tying into the popularity of romantic fantasy novels on TikTok.
These “inspiring books” have emerged as one of the most popular areas on BookTok, a TikTok community where users share their favorite books.
“At Walmart, the customer is at the center of everything we do and we focus on where they are spending their time to create moments of authentic connection with them,” said Courtney Killingsworth, director of brand marketing at Walmart. “This campaign is the perfect way to reach out to and honor Book Talkers and the communities in which they thrive.”
Walmart’s limited edition Spicy Books Hot Sauce Set comes packaged like a book and contains five of Melinda’s hot sauces, each corresponding to a level of heat on a scale (from mild to super hot) that BookTok users have applied to the hottest romance novels. The set is available exclusively online at Walmart.com for a special price. Spicy summer landing page On sale for $14.98 while supplies last.
In addition to the hot sauce set, Walmart is also offering merchandise inspired by the spicy book, including apparel and accessories, as well as the book itself. Merchandise includes beach towels, bucket hats, sandals, pool floats, swimwear, beauty products, and more. The books include, for example, several “romantic” titles by Sarah J. Maas, other books in the “Empire” series by Rebecca Yaros, and several books in the “friends to lovers” genre by Emily Henry.
The retailer will host a live event for the BookTok community in Los Angeles on Tuesday, where participants will enjoy “immersive moments” poolside sipping spicy beverages and reading Spicy Summer books.
The promotion has been a big hit on social media, with enthusiastic unboxing videos posted on TikTok and over 1,000 likes on Instagram on the first day of the campaign.Comments ranged from “This is actually kind of funny, I love it” and “This is genius,” mixed in with plenty of fire and chili pepper emojis. Of course, Paris Hilton gave her trademark seal of approval, writing “This is hot” with three fire emojis.
