Chili’s Is the Latest To Rep Branded Merch

There is nothing like the smell of Chili’s in the morning. The fast casual chain is the latest to highlight its delivery service with a fresh marketing campaign that features branded merch, including scented candles. Along with free delivery through its site and app, Chili's is tapping into the merch trend that has become popular among QSR and fast casual brands that are looking to become a larger part of their customers' lives. 

The "#ChilisMyHouse starter pack" includes a custom doormat with the customer's name, a wooden TV tray, a baby back ribs-scented candle to "make your whole house smell more like a Chili's," a chip clip and a trivia card game.

Franchisors have been taking advantage of branded merch in the hopes that it will garner consumer attention online. The BBQ-scented candle, for instance, is definitely memorable. KFC has experimented with scented merch in the past and has also dropped a clothing line or two.

Earlier this year, McDonald's also promoted its delivery offering and Uber Eats partnership with a loungewear giveaway. The promotion featured a "McDelivery Night In" line of apparel and accessories including slippers, fuzzy socks, hair scrunchies, T-shirts, sweatshirts and fleece shorts.

As third-party services like Grubhub and DoorDash are turning delivery into a major factor for franchisors, there is fierce competition between the service providers. The merch campaign is Chili's latest effort to promote its new delivery capabilities after years of avoiding restaurant delivery due to concerns about logistics, quality and profitability. 

The fast casual concept recently signed an exclusive delivery deal with DoorDash and says that 1.7 million homes have received delivery from its restaurants since then. It looks like the chain is hoping that rib-scented candles will be what gets customers in the mood to raise that number even higher.