Couples were matched based on the contents of their grocery basket for a V-Day campaign
Supermarket chain Tesco decided to help people looking for love this Valentine’s Day with a campaign that matched couples based on what they bought from its store. For ‘Basket Dating,’ Tesco invited 32 single shoppers to take part in a social experiment at its Extra store in Hemel Hempstead in the UK.
The participants were each asked to fill their shopping basket with items they’d buy for a typical Friday night in. Food Behaviour Psychologist Rachel Morris then analyzed all the baskets and attempted to pair people up based on the contents. Those with complementary products were matched in the hope they would have other things in common as well. Morris commented:
“Our shopping baskets can say a lot about us – from our cooking and living habits to hints about our romantic personality. We’ve all heard about love in the aisles and this is the next step.”
After being paired together, the sixteen couples had a brief meeting in Tesco’s produce aisle, where they got to know a little about each other. Five couples who seemed to be getting on well were treated to a romantic meal, which included Champagne cocktails and a special Tesco Valentine’s Menu.
The campaign, by BBH Live, was captured in a short film, with footage of some of the couples who met on the blind dates: