PepsiCo’s Cheetos teams up with Bad Bunny and adidas to uplift Hispanic college students
The popular PepsiCo potato chip brand’s mascot – Chester Cheetah – is teaming up with Bad Bunny to take the Deja tu Huella campaign to the next level, with an exclusive fashion collaboration with adidas and the Deja tu Huella Estudiante Fund, which will award $500,000 to Hispanic students in the US and Puerto Rico.
In Latino culture, there is a phrase that embraces the action of pushing boundaries with your unique individuality: deja tu huella, which translates to ‘leave your mark’.
With this sentiment as the inspiration, Cheetos built a multi-platform initiative designed to rally the next generation to leave their mark on culture — whether through music, fashion, entertainment or more.
The campaign is aligned with PepsiCo’s wider push to uplift Hispanic college students.
Already faced with numerous challenges, the pandemic has inflicted a staggering toll on the Hispanic community in lives lost, rates of infection and joblessness, exposing deep-rooted health and economic disparities. It has also increased challenges for students of colour seeking higher education – a key pathway to better pay, greater job opportunities and long-term economic security.
Earlier this year, PepsiCo announced a $40m investment in a scholarship and professional mentoring programme to support 4,000 students over five years, part of the more than $275m commitment it has made to the Hispanic and Latinx community to address racial inequality and create opportunity.
“We’ve seen how our fans have left their mark on the world and recognise the influence the Hispanic community has had on mainstream culture,” said Jessica Spaulding, senior director of marketing, Frito-Lay North America.
“Cheetos has long been a brand that celebrates all forms of self-expression, so we’re proud to team up once again with an icon like Bad Bunny to help the next generation Deja tu Huella through the launch of the Estudiante Fund and fashion collab with adidas.”
Deja tu Huella Estudiante Fund
Deja tuHuella Estudiante Fund has been developed in partnership with Good Bunny Foundation, and is hosting the #DejatuHuella TikTok Hashtag Challenge that will reward 10 Hispanic students with $50,000 each for their education.
To enter, students in the US and Puerto Rico are invited to submit a 60-second video that shows how they are leaving their mark on the community, the culture or the world, and tag @Cheetos, #DejatuHuella and #Entry to be eligible. Deadline for submissions is 18 August and the winners will be announced at the end of 2021.
Cheetos x Bad Bunny Collection by adidas
The extremely limited adidas leisurewear collection is the result of bringing together Bad Bunny’s signature style with Chester’s orange-themed ‘Cheetos Look’.
In true mischievous fashion, Cheetos is giving its fans living in the US and Puerto Rico the chance to get early access to the exclusive items before they’re officially available for purchase on 6 August.
To unlock access, fans need to don the Cheetos badge of honour, that being fingertips smothered in Cheetos orange-dust, known as Cheetle. They then need to head to the Cheetle iD site , a first-of-its-kind ecommerce experience where Chester will use innovative technology to detect the Cheetle.
The first 100 people who pass the detector will have direct access to purchase items from the collection before the rest of the public.
Whatever path inspires you
“It’s an honour to give back to the Hispanic community that has done so much for me,” said Bad Bunny.
“Between music and fashion, there are so many ways to leave your mark on culture, and I want to encourage everyone to follow whatever path inspires them. That’s what the Deja tu Huella program is all about.”
