An Austin-based popsicle company has gone viral thanks to a superfan in Utah.
It all began June 16, when writer Eli McCann posted a TikTok about watermelon popsicles by GoodPop, a frozen desserts brand in Texas. Eli liked the popsicles. But he wasn’t the superfan — that would be his husband. Eli used social media as an outlet to talk about what he referred to as his partner’s “obsession.”
“Suddenly, he started eating a ridiculous amount of these watermelon popsicles,” Eli said in the video, which garnered over two million likes. “He would go through so many watermelon popsicles — I would literally find, like, a dozen popsicle sticks just around the house every day. And as the weeks passed, more and more. I was like, ‘Do we have a problem? Is there a problem? Like at some point, am I supposed to have like an intervention?'”
Eli also shared a discovery he made last summer, when he realized his husband had been stocking up on Watermelon GoodPop at other locations “just in case.”
“This man had gone around to our friends’ houses and had stored boxes of watermelon popsicles in like all of our friends’ houses in their freezers just in case we happened to be at their house, because he needed to have immediate access to the watermelon popsicles.”
It turns out Eli’s husband wasn’t the only one caught up in this cycle of addiction. Days after Eli’s post, the company’s TikTok published mock “breaking news” coverage of their watermelon popsicles’ growing popularity.
“Nationwide shortages of Watermelon GoodPop are causing widespread cravings for sweet treats with no added sugar,” a “reporter” says. “While popularity is nothing new for Watermelon GoodPop, this summer we’re seeing record-breaking demand.
“Experts blame rising temps and TikTokers who can’t stop raving about the juicy watermelon flavor. Our anonymous source did confirm they’re working to meet the demand. Customers are encouraged to keep checking freezers.”
Unfortunately, the rising demand of Watermelon GoodPop had a direct impact on Eli’s husband. Two days prior to the viral post, Eli said he heard his husband scream in another room. Concerned about the couple’s infant child, Eli went to investigate. The baby was fine, but Eli’s husband was not.
Eli’s husband had discovered that the grocery store where he bought Watermelon GoodPop — a store Eli referred to as his husband’s “supplier” and “dealer” — had stopped carrying the beloved popsicles.
“So this man went into a full-on spiral and spent the better part of two hours calling grocery stores within a 50-mile radius of us to ask if they were going to continue to carry the watermelon GoodPop-brand popsicles, until he found a store that’s like 20 miles away,” Eli said. “Anyway, I am not a religious man, but I am begging you people to pray for us.”
The family didn’t have to wait long before their prayers were answered by none other than the GoodPop itself.
In another video posted to GoodPop’s TikTok account, an employee is shown watching Eli’s TikTok before gathering dozens of boxes with the iconic watermelon popsicles into a large freezer. The documentary-style video ends with text reading, “We’re on our way!”
Eli confirmed that he spoke with GoodPop representatives, who sent more popsicles and agreed to a brand deal. The video with the update was labeled as an ad with a “paid partnership” tag at the bottom.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin brand GoodPop pops off in influencer Eli McCann’s viral watermelon popsicle trend
Reporting by Alexis Simmerman, Austin American-Statesman / Austin American-Statesman
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
