Sweethearts “Love in This Economy” for Valentine’s Day

When your brand stays relevant by staying real …

Source: Sweethearts

This is certainly a sign of the times, and Sweethearts candy knows it.

For the last couple of years, this legacy brand has been doing something incredibly smart with their iconic product. They've been taking a page from what consumers are yearning for and have been leaning into real life. The real life that we all know only too well … the messy, complicated, sometimes heartbreaking reality of what people are actually experiencing in their love life.

Remember the blurry Sweethearts for relationships that are "complicated"? Then the blank Sweethearts for people who got ghosted?

Yeah. Sweethearts has been paying attention to what’s going on in our relationships, particularly at Valentine’s Day when we feel the heat the most.

Now, for Valentine's Day 2026, the brand is at it again because they've recognized this year that couples are under real economic pressure.

Affordability is forcing couples to make choices. Celebrations are being scaled back as dinners out become nights in and expensive gifts become thoughtful and creative alternatives.

It's real and it's everywhere.

So what does Sweethearts do? They acknowledge it and they make sure people feel seen. And they give a gift that we can gift this year that gives a wink and a hug.

This Valentine’s Day the new Sweethearts candy messages include: "SPLIT RENT" and "COOK FOR 2" and "SHARE LOGN."

In other words, the brand celebrates what we face in life right now.

What I love most about this is that it’s coming from a legacy brand, not some indie challenger. By every logic, the brand should have been forgotten and left alone on store shelves; overlooked and replaced by newer, flashier options.

Not Sweethearts!

Oh no, this brand reinvents itself every single year with a new approach, reflecting the world in which we live. Telling us all that they see us.

Empathy.

The question is … can you do that with your brand? Can you break away from yourself and lean into what your consumers are experiencing and reflect that back to them? Can you make them feel seen?

Because that will keep you relevant too! What’s your experience? JIM

Source: Sweethearts