March 05, 2018
Oscars Swag Bags: $100K of Chocolate Jewelry, Lipstick and Pepper Spray
The 90th Academy Awards wrapped up Sunday night— and each of the 26 nominees in the acting and directing categories received the ceremony’s famous swag bag. This year, it was worth an estimated $100,000.
Lash Fary, founder of Los Angeles-based marketing agency Distinctive Assets, has been sourcing and kitting the Oscars swag bag for the past 16 years, though it is not officially associated with the Academy. “[Celebrities’] brands are valuable as a commodity,” Fary told the Washington Post, “and that’s why we’re giving them these products.” The brands that dish out thousands to be part of the swag bag “hope that the stars will love their product,” he added. Companies looking to include their items in the bag—though it comes with no promise that celebrities will publicly endorse any of it—pay Fary a minimum of $4,000 for inclusion.
Among the items in this year’s “Everyone Wins Nominee Gift Bag” was a year’s supply of Healing Saint skin serum and hair follicle stimulant; edible jewelry made of chocolate with flavors such as “Champagne Diamond,” “Ginger Sake Pearl” and “Pomegranate Balsamic Ruby”; a “conflict-free” diamond necklace; personal training sessions with celebrity trainer Alexis Seletzky; fake eyelashes; color-changing lipstick; charcoal whitening toothpaste; a non-invasive full-face skin rejuvenation; a procedure for correcting gum recession (called “Chao Pinhole Gum Rejuvenation”); and, of course, anti-aging supplements. Ironically, next to all the cosmetics and vouchers for corrective procedures was a children’s book called Curlee Girlee, about “empowering young girls to love all their unique features.”
In keeping with the recent #MeToo movement, consumer safety products provider SABRE included keychain pepper spray, gel pepper spray, two types of personal body alarms, and a drugged drink test kit. And, pet care company Halo, Purely for Pets pledged a donation on each recipients’ behalf of 10,000 meals to an animal shelter or rescue of their choice, while Mexican soft drink company Jarritos pledged to donate a pallet of drinks to a charitable event of each nominees’ choice.
Recipients can also enjoy a week at the Golden Door Spa in San Diego, worth around $8,850, and a six-night stay at Koloa Landing Resort in Hawaii, worth about $4,400. By far the most expensive gift is a 12-night vacation in Tanzania for two, valued at more than $40,000.
In the days leading up to Sunday’s ceremony, the Academy set up the first Oscars pop-up store next to the red carpet. Housed in a former Louis Vuitton storefront, merchandise included hats, hoodies and other Oscars paraphernalia, only available in-person at the temporary store.