When the Sky Becomes a Sales Calendar: Brands and Mercury Retrograde

Astrology has a feature marketers fall in love with immediately: a calendar. The sky publishes its own content schedule, in advance, with built-in drama. Mercury goes retrograde, eclipses arrive, signs change over on known dates. That is a free editorial plan with an audience pre-loaded to care.

• In 2019 Starbucks ran a zodiac wheel pairing signs with drinks, and Spotify launched Cosmic Playlists with astrologer Chani Nicholas ^[1].
• Del Taco ran a Mercury retrograde promotion starting January 14, 2022, with further windows scheduled that year ^[2].
• YPulse reported a 19-point rise since 2017 in young people saying mystical healing and supernatural powers can influence health ^[2].
• For a small brand, the calendar is the usable part of astrology: predictable dates and a ready-made reason to talk.

The big-brand playbook

In January 2019, Spotify launched Cosmic Playlists, zodiac-themed mixes released during the super blood wolf moon and built with astrologer Chani Nicholas ^[1]. A month later Starbucks introduced a zodiac wheel pairing signs with drinks: Taurus with an iced matcha latte, Scorpio with an espresso shot, Capricorn with cold brew. A Starbucks representative said customers enjoyed comparing the drinks to their own personalities ^[1]. Neither company shared engagement figures, so the campaigns tell us what brands tried, not what they earned ^[1].

Del Taco went for the funnier version. Starting January 14, 2022, it offered a buy-one-get-one deal on a chicken taco for rewards members during Mercury retrograde, plus taco-themed horoscopes on its website, with more retrograde windows scheduled through the year ^[2].

Why the audience shows up

YPulse, the youth-research firm, noted that the share of young people who say mystical healing and supernatural powers can influence health had risen 19 points compared with 2017, and presented astrology campaigns as an effective way to reach that audience ^[2]. Whether you share the belief or not, it is a cultural fact a brand can use.

How the campaigns worked

The Starbucks Zodiac of February 2019 paired signs with drinks, among them a Taurus iced matcha green tea latte, a Scorpio espresso shot and a Capricorn cold brew, and a company representative said customers had responded by comparing the beverages to their own personalities ^[1]. Spotify’s Cosmic Playlists, launched on January 20, 2019 and timed to the super blood wolf moon, were made with the astrologer Chani Nicholas and illustrated by Rachel Howe; Spotify would not release data on how the playlists performed ^[1]. The article’s explanation of the appeal is that everyone has a sign, and that astrology offers personality-based connection to a brand in uncertain times ^[1].

Del Taco’s 2022 promotion shows the calendar logic. Members of its rewards program got a free taco with the purchase of a Chicken Taco Del Carbon during Mercury retrograde, and the company published a “tacostrology” page with value-menu picks by sign and a taco-themed horoscope ^[2]. The 2022 retrograde windows were January 14 to February 3, May 10 to June 2, September 9 to October 2 and December 29 to January 18, 2023 ^[2]. A date range that repeats on a schedule is something a small brand can plan around.

What a small merch brand can borrow

• The dates. Plan a drop around a sign’s season or a retrograde window; the news hook is already built.
• The wink. Del Taco’s version worked because it made fun of itself. Sincerity is optional; tone is not.
• The humility. Skip any claim that a product will change someone’s luck. Offer a design, not a prediction.

The sky is the one marketing calendar with no budget and no copyright, and nearly everyone you want to reach already knows their sign.

Questions readers ask

Which brands have used astrology in marketing?

Starbucks (a 2019 zodiac wheel), Spotify (2019 Cosmic Playlists with Chani Nicholas) and Del Taco (a 2022 Mercury retrograde promotion) are documented examples ^[1][2].