By Alicia Powell
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – This year’s Oscars swag bags are replete with luxury skincare products, film-inspired merchandise and five-star vacations.
One element will be a little different, though. The same year that Los Angeles suffered devastating wildfires that ripped through suburban neighborhoods, recipients will get a one-year membership to Bright Harbor, a disaster recovery service that helps survivors navigate what happens next.
As well as the personal membership, each nominee will receive 10 further memberships “that they can gift freely to friends, family, neighbors, even fans who might have lost their home in the LA fire,” said Lash Fary, founder of Distinctive Assets, the company behind the gift bags.
For the 23rd year the Los Angeles-based entertainment marketing company will deliver its “Everyone Wins” Nominee Gift Bags, worth over $200,000 each, to 25 top acting and directing nominees. The gifts are curated independently of the Academy that organizes Sunday night’s Oscars.
Other highlights of this year’s bags include a private in-home show from a local magician, a DNA kit that comes with a deep dive into the nominee’s history with a genealogist, and a coat for a pet dog recycled from designer clothing.
“This is California and this is a stressful week for a lot of these folks. So we’ve got four different cannabis options for them,” added Fary, pointing to rose gold vape pens, gummies, pre-rolls and THC-infused margaritas.
The majority of the nominees will inevitably miss out on the coveted Oscar statue but they can console themselves by choosing between vacations at a Maldives villa, a Sri Lankan wellness resort, or a five-star Barcelona hotel.
As well as brightening the day of the A-listers, the bags also serve as a platform to promote small businesses, minority-owned brands and companies that give back to the community, Distinctive Assets says.
(Reporting by Alicia Powell, Writing by Rosalba O’Brien, Editing by Howard Goller)
