Goop, actress Gwyneth Paltrow's controversial lifestyle brand, has come under fire after the company posted a luxury diaper promotion.
The diaper–or shall we say Diapér–is a disposable diaper lined with virgin alpaca wool and fastened with amber gemstones, which the company said are "known for their ancient emotional-cleansing properties."
The company, noting the diapers are infused "with a scent of jasmine and bergamot for a revitalized baby," said in its announcement Diapérs cost $120 for a pack of 12.
Absurd, or so you would think.
The Diapér, as it turns out, is an elaborate publicity stunt designed to raise awareness about the high cost of diapers, according to Paltrow, who responded to outrage online.
You can hear Paltrow's remarks in the video below.
Paltrow said:
"Goop launched a luxury disposable diaper at $120 for a pack of 12 and there was a lot of outrage. Good. It was designed to piss us off because if treating diapers like a luxury makes you mad, so should taxing them like a luxury."
"Despite the absolute necessity of diapers, in 33 states they aren’t treated like an essential item. They're taxed like a luxury good."
"This leaves one in three families struggling to afford them. While eliminating the diaper tax is not a complete solution, it could allow many families to pay for another month's supply."
Paltrow asked her followers to donate to the nonprofit organization Baby2Baby, which provides diapers, clothes and other necessities for children in poverty in the Los Angeles area and in disaster areas across the country.
Baby2Baby has a devoted following among celebrities and is notable for being one of four charities Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, suggested people might donate instead of sending gifts for their newborn son in 2019.
In a statement, Goop said that donations to Baby2Baby "will support their advocacy efforts nationwide, as well as help with the formula shortage and other issues facing families in need."
But the publicity stunt did not go over well with people who have accused Goop–and Paltrow–of making a mockery of poverty.
Mocking deprivation level poverty, with a "luxury" item, that's so close to average prices for a regular in need item.... In the name of "publicity" ...#EatTheRichhttps://twitter.com/NBCNews/status/1524656645514702852\u00a0\u2026— Malkabethwendy (@Malkabethwendy) 1652342231
there is a baby formula shortage but ty goop for the gemstone-encrusted diapershttps://twitter.com/sarajhendricks/status/1524461104713318400\u00a0\u2026— ashley ray (@ashley ray) 1652295072
Goop's marketing team: there's no formula, inflation is at an all time high and we're about to start living in the Handmaid's Tale, but what about an alpaca diaper with gemstones?pic.twitter.com/348aQbjfPQ— Worst Cass Scenario (@Worst Cass Scenario) 1652297262
The Goop Diaper thing is a joke and not a particularly funny joke. If it was an experiment to see how fast they could raise people\u2019s blood pressure, make them mad or sad for no reason in a time when we have lots of real reasons to feel sad and mad, then it worked!— Megan Morrone (@Megan Morrone) 1652303538
But others saw the value in the stunt and came to the company's defense.
Friends, don\u2019t keep falling for that $120 Goop diaper ad. It\u2019s been revealed as satire shortly after posting. In fact, it\u2019s the first good thing that Goop has ever done, as it\u2019s meant to raise awareness of diapers being taxed as luxury items in some areashttps://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna28439\u00a0\u2026— Dr. Jens Foell (@Dr. Jens Foell) 1652344344
The Goop diaper thing is FAKE. Cool your jets, guys\u2026— Ever Carradine (@Ever Carradine) 1652309751
Goop\u2019s diaper being a stunt to make a point about taxing diapers as luxury goods and people still being mad about it is why I hate this app but still can\u2019t turn it off— Kelly Baden (@Kelly Baden) 1652317356
The real joke is on me, because now I\u2019m getting targeted goop ads on every social platformhttps://www.vice.com/en/article/v7dw9m/goop-luxury-diaper-is-of-course-poorly-timed-pr-stunt\u00a0\u2026— Anna Merlan (@Anna Merlan) 1652362263
an easily forgiven sin, since the intention to help families afford diapers is pure. \n\nplease donate to your local @diaperbank #coverbebbehbums\n\nGoop 'Luxury Diaper' Is, Of Course, a Poorly-Timed PR Stunt https://www.vice.com/en/article/v7dw9m/goop-luxury-diaper-is-of-course-poorly-timed-pr-stunt\u00a0\u2026 via @motherboard— Amy K. Owen (@Amy K. Owen) 1652320610
Goop's publicity stunt appeared significantly tone deaf to many because it comes as the United States grapples with an infant formula shortage due to supply chain issues and product recalls.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently working with Abbott Nutrition, the company that had to recently recall its product, to safely resume production.
As of early April, "seven states reported that between 40% and 50% of baby formula products were out of stock," according to a CNN report.
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