• by Erik Oster , January 17, 2024

You know when you’re finished eating a batch of wings, but the flavor lingers on your lips as sauce seeps in anywhere it can reach? That’s the experience Hidden Valley Ranch and Burt’s Bees are chasing with a new collaboration debuting today -- minus the need to check for visible sauce clinging to the corners of your mouth.

That’s right, the two brands collaborated on a wings-themed lip balm. But don’t expect it to be a simple hot sauce and ranch affair. The limited-edition edition release features four flavors: Hidden Valley Ranch, Buffalo Sauce, Crunchy Celery, and Fresh Carrot.

"We are officially in wing eating season, which feels right at home for Hidden Valley Ranch,” CC Ciafone, marketing director for Hidden Valley Ranch, said in a statement, before alluding to the importance of the upcoming Super Bowl as the day when the most wings are consumed. Ciafone also celebrated the initiative as the brand’s “first foray” into the beauty category.

If all this sounds like a joke, it did start as one.

“This all started with an April Fool’s social post featuring Hidden Valley Ranch lip balm,” Burt's Bees General Manager Mariah Eckhardt said in a statement, explaining that fans responded so enthusiastically that it led to making the joke a reality with the “unexpected unison” of the two Clorox-owned brands.

The limited-edition Burt’s Bees x Hidden Valley Ranch Dippers lip balm is available for sale in four-packs on Burt’s Bees’ website beginning today.

Hidden Valley Ranch has made brand collaborations something of a marketing staple, including such atypical crossovers as Hidden Valley Ranch-flavored ice cream in partnership with Van Leeuwen, and a Hidden Valley Ranch x Crocs footwear release. When the brand launched a Hidden Valley Ranch x Hidden Valley Ranch release in November (essentially two bottles fused together), we noted the Clorox roster of brands -- also including Fresh Step cat litter -- could lead to some unusual future collaborations, and it seems we were on to something.

It’s unclear if cat lovers who are Hidden Valley fans can anticipate a ranch-scented litter product in the future. But keep an eye on the brand’s social channels on the first of April: it may be audience-testing some ideas.