From a never-ending influx of skincare products to whipped cream shots, celebrity brands have left many of us pondering… just because people can do something, does it mean they should?
Claudia Sulewski, YouTuber girlfriend of Finneas (Billie Eilish’s brother) has been a recent participant in the hilarity that is celebrity brands. In an interview discussing her new brand CYKLAR, Claudia comically recalls: “Just thinking of a very simple jar and being like, has anyone done that? Has anyone just done like something so simple and timeless?”
Firstly, yes, I believe we’ve seen jars sold before. Secondly, the product within this jar is a $58 body cream. You heard that correctly, a body cream. No different than what could be picked up from your local Boots.
As one may imagine, this release was not well-received, with Sulewski’s comments flooded with criticism over the inaccessibility of the price, the lack of originality in an already over-saturated market and jokes over the strangeness of referring to a body lotion as “gender neutral.” All valid critiques.
Nonetheless, I will give credit where it is due. Claudia is undeniably utilising a more sustainable process than her celeb counterparts, using vegan and cruelty-free ingredients alongside a critical feature of the business being refillable pouches to reduce waste. Even so, do we truly need more skincare brands?
Heading into the arena of diet culture, the Kardashians are producing products that leave us all pondering the day in which their family will contribute something positive to modern society. Kourtney is a current culprit, with her brand Lemme proudly selling metabolism and fat-burning capsules. Just when you feel they had already done enough damage to the body image of teenage girls, you read Kourtney’s slogans regarding the joy of “burning that belly fat”… Hey, at least there’s carbon-neutral shipping!
On a healthier note, Gal Gadot, the iconic Wonder Woman star, is now in the business of pasta! Her brand Goodles (Good-noodles), intends to use more protein, more fibre, and more veg than alternatives! This brand seems to reinforce her superhero status, with reviewers saying it is both delicious and relatively healthy, so perhaps we can ignore the cringe brand name.
Finally, delving into the world of alcohol, let’s not forget Kendall Jenner’s 818 tequila brand. Or the scandals that accompany it. After only seven months, the brand had sold 130,000 cases, making it the best-selling new tequila of 2021. However, Jenner managed to ruin the fun in a promotional video that is the definition of tone-deaf. With Kendall pictured perched on a horse wearing a cowboy hat, plaid shirt and two long braids, many Mexican audiences were left feeling frustrated at her ignorant depiction of the country and its workers while multiple local tequila businesses are overlooked.
Celebrity brands don’t have to be terrible. We can all appreciate an original, accessible and sustainable product, yet there is justified anger in seeing nepotism stars dip in and out of every industry lane searching for their calling. We simply don’t need it.
“Gal Gadot” by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.