Makeup, fashion, skincare and even homewear – there are few areas of business that celebrities have not branched out into, and it looks like food brands are the latest investment among the stars.
Ed Sheeran is the latest celeb to put his finger in the pie, so to speak, having released his own line of hot sauce. Tingly Ted's hot sauce has been in the works for two years, the singer said, and sprang from Sheeran's own love of the spicy stuff.
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For fans in the know, Sheeran is a sauce fanatic, having a tattoo of a bottle of ketchup on his arm.
Lise Hand joined Brendan O'Connor on RTÉ Radio 1 to discuss why hot sauce in particular has become such a fascination with some stars. Van Halen's Michael Anthony has Mad Anthony hot sauce, while Patti Labelle has Hot Flash.
"I can only assume, they spend so much time touring on road and they're eating catering every night and probably, to a certain extent, everything tastes the same."
There's a long history of celeb-backed food companies, starting with Paul Newman and his dressings and sauces, which he started making in his own kitchen and used to fund charities.
It's not just hot sauce, of course. Stranger Things' Noah Schnapp released his own ethical take on a hazelnut spread called tbh, while Jaden Smith launched his Just Water brand when he was just a teenager, which has grown into a sustainable water conservation business too.
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"The drink brands particularly, I think, a lot of it is borne out of enthusiasm", Hand says. She refers to George Clooney, who decided to launch their own tequila brand after spending time building houses in Mexico.
The brand, which they called Casamigos, grew to the point of needing to be licensed and in 2017 Diageo bought the company for almost $1 billion.
Wine has become a booming business for many celebs, from Graham Norton to Kylie Minogue and even Cameron Diaz. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt famously bought a vineyard together, Chateau Miraval, which went on to make a pink champagne.
Arguably no one celeb has used food to rebrand themselves as much as Snoop Dogg, however, who leaned into his own personal love of food and has spun it into a foodie empire. From his cooking show with American icon Martha Stewart, Martha and Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party, to his breakfast cereal Snoop Loopz, Snoop has seamlessly fit into the food arena.
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"He's into so many things, as well", Hand noted. "Part of the cereal sales will be funnelled toward helping homeless people."
Just as Dolly Parton chose to launch her own line of home baking kits, Hand adds that image and personal brand is a big part of what ranges celebs release. "You definitely wouldn't see Dolly launching a tequila."
For the full interview, click the link above.
