The potato has experienced many ups and downs over the course of its existence on Earth. It served as a primary nutritional staple for the people of Ireland before succumbing to blight and causing mass emigration from the country. The potato’s likeness has been used for a toy that is loved by children around the world. It became a form of ammunition when the first mischievous teenager discovered the potato gun. Now, this humble tuber may be having its greatest moment yet.
A company called Potato Parcel has come up with a business model that allows people to apply custom messages and images to spuds and send them through the mail. Three versions of this bizarre product are available.
The original potato parcel features a message of up to 130 characters, so it’s sort of like sending a slow, starchy tweet.
The potato pal is stamped with the image of someone’s face.
The potato postcard comes emblazoned with any type of image.
As one might imagine, consuming a potato printed with a message or image is not a good idea. “We do not recommend eating these potatoes as they have ink and can pick up bacteria during the shipping process,” reads company statement on its FAQ page. “We are not liable for any sickness if you eat the potatoes!”
So how does such a weird business market such a weird product? How about shipping a customized potatoes to a bunch of professional basketball players?
The company was founded in May 2015, but it appears Potato Parcel launched this NBA-focused blitz only last week. The above tweets from NBA stars Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Durant, and Marc Gasol received a combined 57,847 retweets. And these are just three of many hoopsters who have received potato messages and shared them on social media. The NBA is incredibly popular on Twitter. This was a great marketing plan.
In an age when everyone is increasingly relying advancing technology for communication, perhaps potatoes will return civilization to a simpler time.
Originally posted at Eater.com
