Poppi Says Backlash Over Sending Vending Machines to Influencers Is a Big Misunderstanding

Ege and other critics would have been happier if Poppi’s marketing department would have done something more egalitarian, such as sending machines to random influencers or to college campuses where many people could use them.

But here’s the thing: That’s actually what Poppi did.

“Both creators across the U.S. and people in New Orleans received these machines—with our first consumer event taking place at the popular Tulane hot spot The Boot, where college students could enjoy complimentary Poppi for the Big Game and beyond,” said Moss, who added that “these machines will be rolling out to [fans] via events, social giveaways and nominations in the weeks to come.”

Meanwhile, Poppi competitor Olipop has notched plenty of publicity from the misunderstood influencer stunt, even adding kerosene to the fire with posts such as: “For the record, those machines cost $25K each lol.”

For the record, they weren’t, Poppi maintains. The $25K price tag is more than double the machines’ actual cost.

Brands sending free stuff to influencers is not new, of course. Nor is consumer ire over watching others get comped when everyone else has to pay. A survey published on Purse Forum in 2019 asked consumers how they felt about influencers receiving free bags from Louis Vuitton. Nearly 87% of them said a freebie that big was “going too far.”