Warmth (but not stuffing) to fall from Chicago-land bus stops

Updated

In an effort to sell its Stove Top brand of stuffing, Kraft Foods plans to have heated air fall from inside 10 bus shelters in Chicago, according to a New York Times story. At least people waiting for a bus won't be bombarded with the smell of turkey stuffing, although it is a great smell worthy of filling a kitchen on Thanksgiving Day.

Some, however, may get a free taste of a new variety of Stove Top, called Quick Cups, that Kraft workers will hand out during the first three weeks of December to commuters and passers-by at half of the heated shelters.

The ads remind me of the failed ads by the California Milk Processor Board two years ago in San Francisco, where "Got Milk?" ads were pulled from bus stops after people complained of being overwhelmed by the smell of chocolate chip cookies, in the first test of scented outdoor advertising. Warm chocolate chips out of the oven are one thing, but scented strips in a bus stop are too much, the public complained. The ad's pitch was that after smelling the cookies, you'd want a cold glass of milk. Considering how the original "Got Milk" ad has become part of the popular vernacular, you'd think the Milk Board could stop trying so hard.


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