The creator of Hot Dog Water – a satirical product with dubious health benefits that sells for $38 a pop – is planning to set up shop outside this weekend's Goop wellness summit.
The "In Goop Health" event taking place Saturday and Sunday at the Stanley Park Pavilion promises meditation classes, workout classes and a pop-up shop to indulge in a little retail therapy.
You won't be able to buy Douglas Bevans's Hot Dog Water at the summit, but the Vancouver artist will be hawking his overpriced drink right outside.
"We just felt like this was a good opportunity to promote our product and … cross-pollinate with Goop's demographic," Bevans told CTV News.
Bevans and his Hot Dog Water made headlines over the summer when he managed to sell dozens of bottles at an East Vancouver street festival. He touted many health benefits, including the drink's supposed ability to increase brain function and erase crow's feet.
None of it was true, of course. Despite Bevans's claims and the steep price tag, Hot Dog Water is as simple and unappetizing as the name suggests – a bottle of water with a boiled wiener inside.
Bevans said the purpose behind the venture, which is part performance art, is to get consumers to think more critically about the where they're spending their money, and he's excited to spread the word to the Goop crowd this weekend.
He insists he has "no personal vendetta against Goop," but was also quick to point out the bad press Gwyneth Paltrow's lifestyle brand has faced this year.
Just last month, Goop agreed to fork over US$145,000 in civil penalties after a California taskforce found some of its advertised health claims to be unfounded.
Some of the more controversial products sold through Goop include egg-shaped stones meant to be placed inside the buyer's vagina to increase "feminine energy," and a "Calming Mist" meant to be sprayed on children. Critics charge that neither has any proven benefit.
"We really need to think more critically about what is being sold and what kind of claims are being sold and who is selling it," Bevans said. "We're all vulnerable in this era, I think. We're all inundated with people claiming things."
Goop chief content officer Elise Loehnen has defended the company's choice of products, saying part of its mission is to explore issues outside of established medical knowledge.
She also told The Canadian Press that all of Goop's content is vetted by doctors, scientists and lawyers.
Tickets to this weekend's summit are still available online for $150.
With files from CTV Vancouver's Mychaylo Prystupa, The Canadian Press and The Associated Press
