Vending machines normally dispense candy bars and bags of potato chips, but recently one in New York offered prizes such as Starbucks gift cards, selfie sticks, a Vespa, and even private limo service around the city.
Hyatt Centric, a Hyatt hotel brand aimed at millennial travelers, launched its pop-up activation dubbed the "explorer vending machine" at New York's Flatiron Plaza on October 20 to promote its travel destination and exploration-focused "Sunrise to Sunrise" campaign. The structure, produced by Awestruck Marketing, offered more than 1,600 travel-theme prizes that were advertised on a grid. Prizes included $10,000 worth of Hyatt gift cards, $5,000 weekend getaways to a Hyatt hotel of choice, and a Shinola Detroit Arrow bicycle. Once passersby posted a photo of their favorite destination to Instagram with the hashtags #HyattCentric and #Sweepstakes, they could participate in the activation by pressing a large white button to win a prize at random.
The activation also took place in conjunction with the rebranding of the Hyatt Times Square New York to the Hyatt Centric Times Square, which later that night hosted a Z100 Jason Derulo performance. One of the vending machine prizes was two tickets to the show, which was co-hosted by iHeartMedia.
