J.Crew is Making Pasta
"From the island of Capri pants"
In case you’re wondering my David cod arrives tomorrow—talked to Bloomberg about why GABA Labs’s synthetic molecule would truly disrupt non-alcoholic drink space but for now, THC will do. The New York Times called to chat about “coffee buckets” and excess caffeine, remember when I said 2025 would be the year America gets stimulated again?
Roulette finally launched their kickstarter and I’m ordering the Soho disco one, for those who were wondering how you can try HYQ, they just restocked so I’d rush there before they sell out again, their Cool Citrus is a modern Gatorade, you won’t find a crispier comparison, never sponsored just genuinely in awe when I come across a great tasting product.
Fashion and food keep intertwining, something we have reported on extensively, from Balenciaga juice, Jacquemus CBD drinks and now J.Crew’s pasta boxes. In our current late stage capitalism world, it’s no surprise that brands are looking for ways to expand on what I call “affordable affluence” a new kind of lipstick economy. It’s why Millennials and GenZ shill $30 for a smoothie by Hailey Beiber and are obsessed with getting seen at a Gucci Osteria or Dior Café, even if you can’t afford their actual products, and simultaneously we’ve seen the rise of what I dubbed hypebeast grocers, think Happier Grocery or Erewhon. It sounds insane to think that in 2025, mundane items like grocery store products and produce can be seen as status signalers, we’re truly living out Andy Warhol’s biggest dream.
Von Dutch is coming out with a line of alcoholic RTDs, because when the barriers of entry are that low, any one can slap their branding on it and call it a day, not that I’m going to bet against it, I can totally see GenZ and even Millennials sipping on this ironically, it could be this generation’s Four Loko.
In other news—
Little Sesame has raised $8.5M Series A— This brand may be one of the latest success stories in the RTR (Restauran-to-retail) space, the company will use this latest round to invest in expanding their manufacturing capacity. The USDA had previously awarded them $2.2M in funding to help create direct channels for chickpea farmers in the US. I love when a brand is just heads down focused on creating a great tasting product that is clearly winning over the hearts of American families as they expand into more mainstream grocers.
Trump says Coca-Cola will switch to cane sugar in US—
Once considered waste, whey is winning— A few years ago, I remember having a conversation with Sam Alcaine, a professor at Cornell who turned it into a seltzer, a few years ago when I was invited to chat with students. I think pieces like these are just another major win for the dairy industry that is making a triumphant comeback into the good graces of American consumers.
Taste wants us to think there’s something wrong with tinned fish.—The piece reads American-coded as usual, I don’t think Europeans give it this much thought. Chef Jose Andres recently added another tinned fish line catered to go more towards Fishwife demo called FishSnax, Central Market is also now offering Fishwife dupe cans, sardines are everywhere this summer but also “hot girls eat tin fish” is already half a decade old… Both Fishwife, Patagonia and newly launched Nice Cans are examples of brands that focus on sustainable practices when it comes to their tinned fish. Americans also need to distinguish between tinned fish and conservas?!
Like whenever I’m in the comments people are always equating it to like Starkist Charlie or sardines, but again American POV on these items, once viewed as “food for emergency” or “when struggling financially” is unlike European, conservas culture. Insert Jessa meme “I think you guys may be thinking about yourselves too much.” Legacy brands like Ortiz have been doing it since the late 1800s, it’s nothing new, and it probably won’t be anything we stop indulging in anytime soon. I’ve written about Americans adopting Europe aperitivo culture and with that comes things like conservas, olives and even truffle chips. Are you sensing a pattern here?
Chain is hosting a Tabasco omakase—I got a few messages after I shared this, with mostly people admiring the creative team behind Chain in being able to work with legacy brands and restaurant chains to craft events like these. Their popup with I Know What You Did Last Summer and Red Lobster as all over social media for weeks.
And Faherty's apres surf beer! This trend is wild! Do you see it lasting? Thanks, as always, for your great insights.
I really thought Von Dutch was going to have more of a moment with Charli XCX's Brat last year ... kind of feels like they missed a big opportunity. An alcoholic drink is underwhelming to me.