Erewhon, once again, has had one of its yummy products go viral! If you haven’t heard of Erewhon, it’s an LA-based grocery store that has been recently popularized by influencers like Emma Chamberlain. The LA market added a new smoothie to their menu for the month of March: the Coconut Cloud smoothie, which can be yours for the low cost of $17!
Yes, you read that right: seventeen dollars. The beautiful blue concoction has been haunting my TikTok and Instagram feeds for weeks now, and I can’t help but wonder, why? What has compelled people to spend so much on a smoothie, of all things?
The smoothie itself contains almond milk, coconut cream, avocado, almond butter, Blue Majik spirulina, vanilla collagen protein, and more, according to Erewhon. All yummy ingredients, but can they mask the sour taste of a $17 blow to your wallet?
Despite the steep price, I believe the culprit of the Coconut Cloud craze is the influencer behind the collaboration. Erewhon partnered with Marianna Hewitt, influencer and co-founder of beauty brand, Summer Fridays. Hewitt, with over one million loyal followers on Instagram and swoon-worthy lifestyle content, has moved thousands of her followers to try her smoothie. Hewitt’s fans posted, tagged, and promoted the now-infamous smoothie across all social platforms. Photos and taste tests of the decadent drink especially took off on TikTok and Instagram Stories, a lucky few being reposted by Hewitt herself.
I was baffled by the immense reach of the smoothie craze when I saw my friends beginning to post their own journeys to the market. Even my own sister jumped in on the trend, noting that she “honestly did really like it, but wouldn’t get it again.” Experiencing a phenomenon that seems so distant cross the line from internet trend to personal life showed me how deeply entrenched in our daily lives consumer trends have become, thanks to social media.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen products like this go viral, with everyone seemingly possessing them overnight (I’m looking at you, Poster Girl Dress and Dyson AirWrap). With the right combination of branding and influence—and the help of TikTok—people can drive each other to spend an exorbitant amount of money on these commodities. TikTok’s ever-growing bandwagon effect has caused people to feel the need to jump on trends, despite how fleeting they may be. Whether or not these increasing spending habits are beneficial or detrimental, they spark some creative content and intriguing observations.
If you have not yet gotten the chance to try the smoothie for yourself, don’t worry! Erewhon has just announced their decision to extend the Coconut Cloud smoothie on the menu for the month of April! Do with this information what you will—as long as you don’t feel pressured to spend $17 that you don’t want to spend.