Still from AXE Apollo Space Academy video. Copyright Unilever.
In a marketing campaign too strange not to be true, the Axe brand of body spray/deodorant/smelly stuff for young men has recruited iconic astronaut Buzz Aldrin to promote their new “Apollo” scent for grooming products. Oh, and they’re sending 22 guys from around the world into space too through the Axe Apollo Space Academy. (Maybe.)
>>Disclaimer: This is a product for guys that is running a competition aimed at attracting male consumers (probably in that lucrative 18-25 range). If you are not eligible to sign up, I’m sorry. I didn’t make up the rules. I’m probably not either, due to my affiliation with parabolic flight. We will have to find another way to get to space!
From January 9 through February 3, guys in the US can enter to win a “bonus” ticket to space as a celebration of Axe’s decision to spend millions on a SuperBowl ad. (I would make fun of this, but it is promoting SPACE so I won’t.) For everyone else in the world: make a profile explaining why you should get to go to space — and then get everyone to vote on you. If you make it into the top tier, you do a country-specific “challenge” to determine a national champ.
Winners from 20 countries move on to the ‘Space Camp’ round in Florida where high speed jets will flip you around, parabolic flights will get you weightless, and a centrifuge will crush you with either centripetal or centrifugal force. All of this is to determine who won’t freak out on a suborbital space jaunt on a (still untested, still in development) Lynx spacecraft. If the spaceship doesn’t fly by the end of 2020, the winner gets a check for $86k. Not space, but not too bad after seven years of waiting.
Sadly, the ‘Apollo’ scent does not actually smell like the moon. “Fresh sage, crisp mandarin, and smooth sandalwood” does not sound like walking on the moon to me. Bummer. (Though likely much nicer to actually smell on a daily basis.)
I’m interested to see how this will play out around the world. I don’t want to see space tourism become yet another area dominated by machismo and bravado. The idea of an international competition where we the people get to help pick the finalists, however, does have some appeal. Who out there is worthy of the geek vote? Show thyself!
And, for any feminine products wanting to make a splash in the market right now, this is a GREAT time to launch a campaign to send a bunch of smart women to space on a Virgin Galactic flight!
And now, watch Buzz Aldrin talk about deodorant as though it were space flight training. Really.
