Controversial auction of promotional gift Ricardo vendor wants 2000 francs for Aromat cap

The Aromat cap has been a coveted collector's item since the last Lauberhorn races. The promotional gift is being traded for high sums on Ricardo.

If you want to buy a cap from the cult brand Aromat at auction on Ricardo, you'll have to dig deep into your pockets. One bidder is asking an immediate price of 2,000 francs, as screenshots available to "20 Minuten" show. The seller from Arbon has since lowered the price to 500 francs.

The reason for the high demand is the Lauberhorn races last weekend. Pictures on TV and media portals showed numerous fans wearing the eye-catching accessory.

The bids for all caps are over 100 francs. In these cases, however, the free market is at play, as the example of one seller shows: a 41-year-old woman put her Aromat cap, which she once received as a consolation prize in a competition, on Ricardo after the downhill classic. She started the auction at 1 franc - now the price is 116 francs. "Who would have thought that it would be so popular now," she is quoted as saying by "20 Minuten".

Behind the cap is a successful guerrilla marketing campaign by Streuplan, the agency behind Aromat. According to Creative Director Thomas Back, around 1,000 caps have been in circulation since the campaign was launched in winter 2023.

The caps are not available to buy in the shops. However, Aromat fans do not necessarily have to rely on the Ricardo auctions: The next distribution campaign is due in February 2025 - it is not yet known where this will take place.