The $19 Strawberry Sold at Erewhon
March 7, 2025
Set atop a perfectly circular foam pad, each gigantic Elly Amai strawberry is enclosed in its own dome-shaped clear container like the enchanted rose in Beauty and the Beast. This new, 19-dollar product sold on the shelves of Erewhon has gone viral on Instagram and TikTok, selling out in stores.
Erewhon, a luxury grocery chain in LA, has gained exponential popularity through social media and influencers. Celebrity-branded smoothies, such as Kendall Jenner’s “Peaches and Cream” and Hailey Bieber’s “Strawberry Glaze Soft Serve” smoothies have carried Erewhon to the forefront of grocery stores, giving it an element of novelty which attracts locals and tourists alike. Erewhon is also seen as an embodiment of affluent LA life, contributing to this grocery chain’s popularity.
Elly Amai is a Japanese luxury fruit seller that promises the highest quality and an amazing consumption experience.
Around a month ago, Antoci, the niece of the Erewhon owners, posted a TikTok of herself unboxing and taste testing an Elly Amai strawberry. The video went viral, garnering millions of views, and launched a trend, attracting a frenzy of customers that stripped the shelves clean of this product.
The Elly Amai organic strawberry is imported fresh from Kyoto, Japan. From the moment the strawberry is picked, it travels at record speed, landing on Erewhon shelves in just 24-48 hours, largely contributing to this strawberry’s high price. Elly Amai strawberries are special for their exceptional size, aesthetic symmetry, enticing color, and incredible taste, advertised as strawberries that “redefine sweetness and beauty.”
The exceptionally high prices of this fruit may also be credited to the sophisticated experience from purchasing to consuming. After removing the strawberry from its elegant dome packaging, customers are instructed to rinse the strawberry, pluck off the stem, and wait 30 minutes to allow for the maximum amount of sweetness and aroma.
That said, numerous critics express exasperation at the absurd price for 1 singular strawberry. Although Erewhon is a pricey grocery store to start, this Elly Amai strawberry has set a new high in the minds of consumers. Yet, this product has been one of the greatest successes—since the celebrity smoothies—to hit Erewhon shelves, which truly demonstrates the influence social media has on consumers. One TikTok video with millions of views, and this 19-dollar strawberry has become a coveted product.
Whether you're a fan or a sceptic of this new strawberry that has taken the grocery markets by storm, and whether this singular fruit lives up to the expectations and descriptions it champions, it is still a truly impressive marketing success that fully utilized social media to attract consumers.