EoB #2: The Ninja Creami

What would you do if your brand’s newest product launched to a collective yawn from consumers and then - two years later - suddenly went wildly viral? Would you jump on the gift you were handed by the internet algorithm gods? Go full-court-press with your marketing? Try to snag a celebrity endorsement?

What if you did… nothing?

That was the choice of the team behind the Ninja Creami, the sleeper hit that’s currently sold out everywhere despite itself.

record scratch You’re probably wondering how I got here…

Our story starts in July 2021. Ninja is best known for capitalizing on trends by quickly launching more affordable copycat versions of incredibly popular small appliances. The brand originally rose to prominence with a “professional quality” blender that offered the features and performance of a Vitamix for about half the price. They later merged with Shark, a similar brand concept known for high-quality, lower-priced dupes of the Dyson product line.

SharkNinja (as the company is now known) products consistently sell well due to favorable consumer reviews, widespread availability, and a competitive price tag. So, it was a bit of a surprise when two years ago they released a new concept that was pretty much an immediate flop: the Creami.

A Pricing, Packaging, and Promotional Dumpster Creami Fire

The Creami was not set up for success from the start.

First, there was no real market demand. While past Ninja products successfully piggybacked on appliance trends like the InstantPot and countertop air fryers, consumers weren’t clamoring for an in-home ice cream maker.

Second, the Creami didn’t improve upon an existing experience. Ice cream makers have always been noisy, expensive, and tedious. The Creami solves none of these issues, plus has a host of problems all its own. It’s loud as hell, the base model costs $200, and ingredients must be pre-frozen for 24 hours. Additionally, there have been frequent reports of the machine malfunctioning, occasionally to the point of catching on fire.

Third, they launched with a less-than-robust marketing strategy. As far as I can tell (and personally remember), there was no real advertising. The extent of their go-to-market strategy seems to have been a press release with a slightly misguided (ok, unhinged) video. The video asks self-identified ice cream lovers, “What does summer in a scoop taste like to you?” The responses include classic ice cream flavors like beef jerky, dill pickle, and “water mixed with a little bit of juice.”

To their credit, Ninja did eventually attempt a partnership with Truly hard seltzer a year later in 2022, but again, it didn’t generate much interest or traction.

Fourth, and finally, the Creami had the misfortune of launching during the huge dip in Covid cases during the summer of 2021, when vaccines became widely available. After spending a year and a half inside no one wanted to make homemade ice cream. We wanted to be out in the world together, ordering ice cream in public and holding the cones in our grubby little hands.

All of this spelled death for the Creami. It languished on store shelves until a pivotal moment in May 2023.

The Sudden Rise of #CreamiTok

Seemingly out of nowhere, in May of this year, #FitTok and #LiftTok discovered that the Creami could turn protein shakes into something very closely resembling normal ice cream. With a full pint clocking in around 300 calories and up to 40g of protein, there was even nutritional wiggle room to add mix-ins like Oreos, Reese’s Pieces, and fudge brownies. The appliance’s popularity exploded. No more icey protein powder ice cream or banana-based “nice cream.” Now macro-conscious consumers could enjoy a true ice cream dupe with the stats of a protein shake.

In just 3 months the #NinjaCreami tag on TikTok had over 607 million views. In one video a woman (Jess of @SamAndJessOfficial) pleads with her husband to get a Creami despite his suggestion that she use the $5 alternative for sale on another shelf. “There’s a reason this one is more expensive,” she says. “Have you seen the TikToks? It’s so creamy.” As content like this exploded, more and more viewers were sucked deep into the Ninja Creami algorithm. And after watching video after video, many inevitably went out and bought one.

Ninja’s Fight, Flight, Freeze Response

You may have noticed that throughout this story, I haven’t included a single link to the Creami itself. There’s no point; it is non-existent.

A few weeks ago, when I found out about the possibility of eating high-protein ice cream for literally every meal, I became obsessed with finding a Creami of my own. I eventually tracked down the most basic version in a suburban Target. It was the only machine available in a 50-mile radius at any retailer.

Stores and websites are completely sold out of every model, and pre-owned Creamis are selling on eBay and Craigslist for 2-5x retail. Ninja continues to lag in restocking the product, with no information on when inventory might come back. One user on a Creami-dedicated subreddit went so far as to read through Ninja’s inventory API to find hidden stock and get around the “Out of Stock” messaging on the company’s site.

In addition to their painfully slow supply chain, Ninja’s marketing team never capitalized on the opportunity presented by Creami fanatics. Their Instagram features a highlight reel of micro-influencers unboxing the machine in 2021 and trying Truly slushy recipes in 2022, but they haven’t added anything new in this calendar year. Their TikTok has barely featured the device since it went viral and while they initially engaged with commenters, they’re now silent when desperate would-be-customers ask for updates on when inventory will be available.

Despite continued popularity on social media, Ninja has already moved on. They’re currently focused on promoting the new Thirsti seltzer machine (lol these names). This may be a bizarre choice by most marketing standards, but the Creami has sold out without any additional hours or dollars spent promoting it - a low-effort, high-ROI strategy.

I’m still wondering just how much more success they could have had if they had noticed the trend a little sooner, engaged with their audience a little more frequently, and ramped up production a little faster. I guess we’ll never know. So, good luck finding a Creami of your own, and maybe put a plan in place for your marketing team in the event you stumble into millions of dollars of free publicity via a rabid TikTok fandom.

FitTok Content To Fill The Creami-Shaped Hole In Your Heart

• I hate almost every brand of protein bar (chalky, bitter garbagé) but after extensive taste testing, I found Barebells and have been ordering them since July 2022. The salty peanut version is as good as a Snickers - for real.

• If you’ve never really explored lifting weights but you’re feeling a little strength-curious, check out Casey Johnston’s Couch to Barbell program.

• Casey also writes her own weekly newsletter, She’s A Beast, featuring a smorgasbord of fitness topics as well as the Ask A Swole Woman advice column. (She’s also an excellent follow on Instagram!)

• When I’m not eating protein ice cream and Barebells for B/L/D, I love Dishing Out Health’s recipes and the fact that she’s an actual Registered Dietitian. Another delightful Instagram follow, her Reels could double as guided meditations. My all-time fave is the Salmon Couscous Salad with Feta Dressing. You can read the recipe here, but wouldn’t you rather watch it on a soothing loop?

dishingouthealth

View more on Instagram

This post may contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission. I only link out to products I personally use and love, and any commission earned offsets the cost of sending the newsletter.