Well, you can't stay atop forever

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Last week I posted on the meal delivery company HelloFresh’s decision to advertise the availability of high-fiber anal sex prep kits for its gay (well, I suppose for any of their rear-ender) customers.

Today, NYPost columnist Bethany Mandel offers her own opinion on the contrversy:

HelloFresh should take notes from Bud Light — embracing Pride typically precedes a business freefall

You can always count on Pride Month for an unsolicited and unwelcome window into the sex lives of people you barely know.

This year there’s a twist: Meal-prep delivery services are getting in on the act, plastering their social media accounts with graphic messages that link cooking with sex. 

It started when HelloFresh indulged in vulgar sexual innuendos last week, posting: “For those of you who are … prepping … we have an extensive lineup of high-fiber recipes available. Happy Pride.” 

This is a subscription-based company that sends ingredients to your door with instructions for how to cook them.

It caters to busy families short on the time needed for meal planning and food shopping.

[You know, like the family they show in their other ads — FWIW}:

Now those families are left to associate the brand with explicit sexual content. 

The response to this post winking at a high-fiber cleanse ahead of gay sex was an immediate and negative tidal wave.

“Subscription. Cancelled,” one customer posted, one of thousands of similar reactions.  

 “I wanna know the numbers; how much money have y’all lost???” went another comment.

In a rational world, the HelloFresh marketing department would have received an immediate call from corporate brass demanding the post’s removal.

Instead, they doubled down and posted a follow-up, offering the discount code BOTTOMSUP just to drive the point home. 

And a few marketing “experts” sent HelloFresh their praise.

“Hi, I work as a marketing manager,” Instagram user HomeWithHildy gushed, “and I just wanted to say that whoever plans your content and campaigns is a genius and deserves a raise. They have made your brand unforgettable.” 

The campaign is indeed unforgettable, but not in the way Hildy seems to mean.

We’ve seen this play before: Recall Bud Light’s partnership with controversial trans activist Dylan Mulvaney in 2023.

The impact of that debacle was immediate — and did measurable harm to InBev’s bottom line.

Bud Light experienced a sharp decline in sales — an 11% drop in the first week of the backlash, growing to 21% percent in the next week — that lingered for years. 

But wait, it gets better! Blue Apron jumps into the group grope: “Bend over, Bruce, and hold our beer”

You’d think competing meal delivery services would learn from HelloFresh’s mistake and refrain from sparking a similar firestorm.

That’s not what happened, though, because millennial marketers see their jobs as social-justice engineers rather than salespeople. 

After several days of bad press for HelloFresh, its top competitor, Blue Apron, decided to join in.

It posted a message formatted to mimic its rival’s, labeling it as an “OFFICIAL STATEMENT.”

Its content was just as smutty: “While eating out can be exciting, there’s something to be said for diving head first into a satisfying box at home. Happy Pride to everyone who appreciates a good box.” 

…. This problem is bigger than Pride Month.

Corporate marketers live and work inside a cultural bubble that treats social-media engagement as success — regardless of whether it translates into revenue.

They’re rewarded for going viral, not for selling meal kits. 

…. A meal-kit company is supposed to deliver dinner. When it starts treating activism as the product, investors have every reason to wonder whether management has forgotten what business they’re actually in.

FWIW:
The effect of HelloFresh’s woke marketing department the company’s executives that set it loose is already reaping dividends – reducing them. actually.

I asked Google how the company’s doing and got the answer: not well.

Summary by AI of a March 18, 2026 article in the Guardian:

Q: Is HelloFresh struggling right now?

A: AI Overview

Yes, HelloFresh is navigating a major operational and financial struggle. Following a pandemic-era boom, the company has faced years of falling demand and customer retention challenges.

Key challenges include:

  • Financial Slump: Total annual revenues declined, and the company projects a further 3% to 6% decrease in revenue. Its market value has plummeted over 90% from its 2021 peak.

  • Massive Cost Cuts: The company has laid off hundreds of employees and closed delivery centers to cut costs.

    The Guardian

  • Market Exits: HelloFresh has completely withdrawn from markets like Spain and Italy, citing a lack of clear paths to sustainable profitability

    .While HelloFresh remains a dominant player in the meal kit and ready-to-eat space, they are actively downsizing and attempting to pivot their strategy to stay profitable in a shrinking market.

Morons.