Specialty ice cream brand Van Leeuwen has collaborated with a laundry list of brands and artists over the past few years on a variety of ice cream flavors. Kraft Mac N’ Cheese, Hidden Valley Ranch, Uber One, Sabrina Carpenter, and more. But now, Liquid Death is flipping the script.
The cult favorite water brand is launching a new, limited edition sparkling water flavor as a Van Leeuwen collab: Hot Fudge Sundae.
It’s Liquid Death’s first time working with another brand to create a new flavor. But it continues the brand’s love of elaborate stunt product marketing. In 2021, it put Tony Hawk’s blood into a branded skateboard. A 2022 Halloween collaboration with Martha Stewart included a $58 Dismembered Moments candle, shaped like a severed hand holding a can of Liquid Death. And this summer, in a nod to Pepsi’s infamous 1995 debacle (and the Netflix doc about it), the brand launched a contest for fans to win an actual L39 Aero Jet.
The strategy has been an undoubted, if unlikely, success. Earlier this year, the company raised a new round of funding that boosted its valuation to $1.4 billion.
The spot for Hot Fudge Sundae is a straight-up spoof of fratty beer ads. But instead of booze, it’s creamy melted ice cream spilling through the funnels and out of shotgunned cans. It’s all very “Milk was a bad choice.”
Fun, not thirsty
“We’re all about making healthy beverages more fun,” said Liquid Death’s vice-president of marketing Greg Fass in a statement. “So teaming up with Van Leeuwen Ice Cream to make the first chuggable, 20-calorie hot fudge sundae was the perfect pairing.”
Of course they want to make it tasty, but let’s be clear—this is a pure marketing stunt consistent with Liquid Death tradition. Shock value, novelty, and a few laughs has always been the priority over a thirsty hard sell. CEO and founder Mike Cessario told me at Cannes this summer (for an upcoming Fast Company video series) that water is only part of the equation. “We’re setting out to be an entertainment company that’s monetizes via beverages,” says Cessario. “Which is no different really than Red Bull or Monster. But their specific entertainment is action sports. Our entertainment is comedy, so we’re always just looking for how do we make people laugh?”
The limited edition Hot Fudge Sundae flavor is now available in eight-pack tallboy cans for $13.99 on Amazon, Liquid Death’s TikTok Shop, and at Van Leeuwen stores across the U.S.