Lush is translating Día de Muertos traditions into personal care with a seven-piece collection shaped through its employee Co-Create program. The range draws on culturally significant foods, imagery, and beliefs, including a sugar skull-inspired Calaverita bath bomb, a horchata body scrub, Postrecito soap, and Aliento del Colibrí shower gel. Employees with personal connections to the celebration helped develop the products, while Mexican artists contributed designs for Lush’s reusable knot wraps, bringing additional cultural perspectives into the collection.
The approach gives Lush a way to develop seasonal products through firsthand cultural storytelling rather than relying solely on external inspiration. For the company, limited-edition collections can encourage discovery and repeat visits while refreshing familiar bath and body formats. Early app access can also drive customers toward Lush’s digital ecosystem, while the global release introduces culturally rooted products and employee stories to shoppers across its international retail network.
Image Credit: Lush
What Makes This Trend Stand Out
- Employee-led Cultural Design
- Internal contributors with lived cultural knowledge create more authentic seasonal products while reducing the risk of surface-level appropriation.
- Ritual-inspired Personal Care
- Traditional foods, symbols, and beliefs are being reimagined as sensory bath and body formats that deepen emotional relevance for shoppers.
- Limited-edition Story Commerce
- Seasonal product drops tied to cultural narratives can strengthen digital engagement, repeat visits, and collectible purchasing behavior.
Sectors Adopting This
- Beauty and Personal Care
- Culturally grounded formulations and packaging open space for differentiated product lines built around heritage, ritual, and sensory storytelling.
- Retail
- Exclusive app access and global seasonal launches expand opportunities for retailers to connect discovery-driven shopping with loyalty ecosystems.
- Art and Design
- Collaborations with cultural artists introduce richer visual identities for reusable packaging, merchandise, and brand storytelling assets.
