Follow your nose, and be sure to bring plenty of milk.
The Big Fruit Loop just hit the market, a giant 930-calorie single fruit loop that costs $19.99.
The cereal killer is the latest creation of Brooklyn-based art collective MSCHF, which specializes in limited-edition “drops” that come out every two weeks. This is the same company that sold Lil Nas X “Satan Shoes” — Nike Air Max 97s with a bronze pentagram, inverted cross, and a drop of real human blood for $1018.
The shoes sold out in minutes.
Big Fruit Loop is less controversial, although Kellogg’s isn’t too happy about it. Company spokesperson Kris Bahner told CNN that the “Big Fruit Loop” constitutes “trademark infringement and unauthorized use of our brand,” adding, “we have reached out to the company seeking an amicable resolution.”
Packaged in a colorful box with images of Toucan Sam choking, Big Fruit Loop promises to be “Part of an Imbalanced Breakfast.” The single blueberry loop tastes like a Fruit Loop, but it contains 870 grams of sodium and 75 grams of sugar.
“With MSCHF, we are always looking at cultural readymades we can play with,” Daniel Greenberg, MSCHF’s co-founder, told Food & Wine. “Cereal is, of course, one of those things. When looking at the object and thinking about what we could do with it, enlarging it to fit the size of the box seemed too perfect to pass up.”
Is this some sort of commentary on excessive consumerism?
Greenberg won’t say. “As always with any MSCHF release, it is up to you to decide,”
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A successful business model?
MSCHF’s funny stunt art has them laughing all the way to the bank. In addition to Satan Shoes, products like “Jesus Shoes,” Air Max 97s with soles containing holy water from the River Jordan, also sold out to the tune of $1,425 a pop.
Last year, Business Insider reported that MSCHF, founded by a former BuzzFeed employee, closed two funding rounds totaling $11.5 million.
More recently, investor Sahil Bloom did a Twitter thread analyzing MSCHF, which he says is “as creative as they are profitable.”
MSCHF is an interesting company—an art collective that does crazy, limited edition product drops that sell out in minutes.
Some of their prior work:
• Nike “Jesus Shoes”
• Museum of Forgeries
• Lil Nas X “Satan Shoes”The drops are as creative as they are profitable. pic.twitter.com/9l33OVb4zz
— Sahil Bloom (@SahilBloom) January 24, 2022
Bloom tracked sales of their Cease & Desist Grand Prix shirt, featuring logos from Disney, Microsoft, Tesla, Walmart, Subway, Starbucks, Coke, and Amazon. Bloom estimates that selling just eight shirts generated: “$120K revenue; $75K profit, millions in earned media, and thumb nose @ big corps.”