How MrBeast, Logan Paul and KSI are challenging Lunchables with a new brand

MrBeast, Logan Paul and KSI are taking on Lunchables as they look to get their chocolate bars and Prime drinks into the hands of more younger consumers. On Monday, the three creators announced the launch of Lunchly, a prepackaged lunch brand geared toward kids that includes a chocolate bar from MrBeast’s Feastables line and a bottle of Prime Hydration, the electrolyte-filled beverage founded two years ago by Logan Paul and Olajide William Olatunji, known as KSI. Lunchly options include either mini pizzas, nachos or crackers, turkey and cheese. Lunchly’s website takes subtle aim at the Kraft Heinz-owned Lunchables brand, including a section called “Us vs Them” that attempts to portray Lunchly’s packaging, flavor and electrolyte contents as superior. Lunchables include Kraft Heinz-owned Capri Sun. See Ad Age’s 2024 Breakout Brand Leaders and Work here Lunchly is being sold at Dillons, Ralphs, Food 4 Less, Mariano’s and Kroger, among other retailers, according to the new brand’s site. It will roll out at Albertsons later this month. “Our end game has always been to not only provide high quality products, but also healthier alternatives,” Paul said in a statement. “That’s why we’re entering the lunch grab-and-go market. It’s been dominated by Lunchables since we were kids ourselves and it's time to provide a better option for those looking for a convenient, healthier choice.” The Lunchly line comes as Lunchables and Capri Sun have seen a decline in sales. Kraft Heinz Co. CEO Carlos Abrams-Rivera told analysts during the company’s second-quarter earnings call that the two brands were a “meaningful headwind for us and in our second quarter.” “The teams are getting ready, both in terms of renovating, innovating, doubling the marketing spend, improving the media mix, improving the targeting strategies, and increasing the value equation for the consumers as we go forward,” Abrams-Rivera said. On its website, Lunchly says it has “Flavorful combos” compared to Lunchables’ “Standard picks.” Lunchly also boasts 400 mg of electrolytes from the Prime drink, compared to 55 mg from a traditional Capri Sun found in Lunchables. Lunchly also says its boxed meals have fewer calories and less sugar. While Kraft Heinz has significant corporate muscle and marketing spending power, Lunchly can capture some of MrBeast’s 315 million YouTube subscribers, Paul’s 27 million Instagram followers and KSI’s 13 million Instagram followers. But the launch comes amid a Prime sales slump and MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, deals with the negative press over allegations that longtime collaborator Ava Tyson shared inappropriate messages with a minor. (Tyson stepped down shortly after the accusations became public. MrBeast recently announced plans to hire a chief human resources officer, require employees to go through sensitivity training and implement an anonymous reporting system, according to a confidential memo obtained by the Associated Press. He also plans to hire a chief financial officer and general counsel.) Over the last few days, I’ve become aware of the serious allegations of Ava Tyson's behavior online and I am disgusted and opposed to such unacceptable acts.During that time, I have been focused on hiring an independent third party to conduct a thorough investigation to ensure…— MrBeast (@MrBeast) July 25, 2024 Feastables and Prime were both founded in 2022. Prime is the official drink of the UFC and has a sponsorship with the Arsenal soccer team and MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers. Prime, which also sells an energy drink, recorded $250 million in sales in its first year, according to Bloomberg. But the brand is facing class-action lawsuits alleging that its drinks contain excessive caffeine and toxic, so-called forever chemicals. (Prime Hydration, the variety in Lunchly, does not contain caffeine.) The company has also experienced slumping sales in the U.K. and in the U.S., where sales volume fell 11% in the first six months of this year, according to Beverage Digest. Like Paul and KSI, MrBeast initially gained fame via his YouTube channel, where he is known for creating game show and reality TV-like videos—including “7 days stranded on an island” and “Protect the yacht! Keep it!”—that often ends with contestants winning large sums of money or other expensive prizes. Some contestants of the unreleased “Beast Games,” which is being made with Amazon and MGM Studios, recently told The New York Times that the set was beset with poor conditions, including a lack of food and inadequate medical care. He has leveraged that fame to promote the Feastables line of peanut butter and chocolate bars. Earlier this year he partnered with Zaxby’s on the chain’s first celebrity box. The MrBeast Box includes a Feastables milk chocolate bar, four chicken fingers, crinkle fries, cheddar bites two slices of Texas toast, ranch and Zax sauce. MrBeast partnered with Virtual Dining in 2020 to sell MrBeast burgers and fries through ghost kitchens. (He sued the company in 2023 for breach of contract after complaints that the burgers were “inedible.”) In 2022, he opened a brick-and-mortar MrBeast Burger at the American Dream Mall in New Jersey which drew thousands of fans at its opening.

How MrBeast, Logan Paul and KSI are challenging Lunchables with a new brand

Featured Stories