Weekly Pickups: New-age candy, instant Indian meals, and more...
Ft. Oren John's take on Nara Smith's Algae Oil
Welcome back to Weekly Pickups!
Today is Nate’s first OOO in a hot minute, the weather is peak Fall, Kraft just released an Apple Pie Mac & Cheese in collaboration with Jason Biggs (which somehow just makes sense)…
…and all of this calls for celebration that only our friends at Spring Cash can offer.
Following its $336 million raise from GB Bank and others, Spring Cash is giving CPG brands a 0% APR (up to $50K) advance on any of your unpaid retailer or distributor invoices.
It’s insanely easy to use: Just submit an invoice to their site, and Spring Cash’s AI approves invoices within six (6!!!) minutes and sends you money immediately.
Brands like Laurel’s Coffee, Supermush, Flock Foods, and Cloud 23 are using Spring Cash to get paid immediately for invoices from Costco, Target, Whole Foods, and more.
No more waiting on a retailer—your sale turns into instant cash in the bank that you can put back into your brand and keep growing.
Now, let’s get into what we’ve been loving this week →
Nate’s Pickup:
Harken Sweets (THE NUTTY ONE and The Gooey One)
I LOVE candy. I love candy so much I had a candy drawer in my childhood home growing up, in my college dorm room, and even to this day I have candy all around the house. I am a candy fiend. And luckily, there are some AMAZING new candy brands coming on the market taking the traditional ones and upgrading them. Enter Harken!
Quick Facts: Date-sweetened candy bars that taste like your childhood favorites but are made with 100% plant-based ingredients. No added sugar, packed with fiber, and created by CPG industry veterans who wanted to make treats you can actually feel good about eating.
Reasons to love:
Dates are simply the best. Dates are truly (next to maple syrup) my favorite natural sweetener. It’s simply just so good and pairs SO well with chocolate. They bring this depth of flavor that makes it feel like such an upgrade over traditional bars. It’s that same satisfying sweetness but with some added nutritional value and lower sugar.
Hidden benefits. These bars, made from 100% plant-based ingredients, contain no added sugar and pack as much fiber as five cups of kale. With fiber becoming the next big thing (and everyone trying to sneak it into everything), Harken just drops it into legitimately delicious candy bars. It’s not the main callout, but if you’re looking for it it’s there. You’re getting prebiotics, antioxidants, and all that good stuff while thinking you’re just having some tasty candy.
A true candy upgrade for every craving. If you like Snickers you’ll LOVE The Nutty One®, if you like a Milky Way, then you’ll LOVE The Gooey One®, if you like Almond Joy you’ll LOVE The Coconutty Ones, if you like a Take 5 you’ll LOVE The Crunchy One.
Where to buy: Online and in stores nationwide (Walmart, The Fresh Market, Sprouts, and more)
Jenna’s Pickup:
The Cumin Club - Palak Paneer
I LOVE Indian food. My dad grew up in Cape Town, where there’s a wealth of Indian street food and culinary influence. So when he immigrated to the US, he sought out those flavors of home. We ate a lot of Indian food in my household (for a suburban American, caucasian family, at least)—to the point that it’s become a version of comfort food for me.
So when I learned about The Cumin Club, I was both very excited and somewhat skeptical. It claims to be “restaurant-quality,” but how could Indian food from a pouch, that’s ready in just five minutes, actually taste like the real deal? My bar was low—like, lower than Trader Joe’s frozen Channa Masala, low—and boy, was I proven wrong.
Quick Facts: Five-minute, just-add-water Indian meals in shelf-stable pouches. Still have more to try, but I’m loving the Palak Paneer: a creamy, comforting spinach curry with paneer (Indian cheese cubes, somewhat like tofu).
Reasons to love:
Made in India (and you can tell). The co-founders of The Cumin Club take Indian food seriously. They thoughtfully honor the different regions of India by sourcing regional ingredients and spices specific to each cuisine and working with a team of chefs from all over India, who use regional techniques to ensure authenticity.
Convenience at its finest. I know there are some great frozen Indian food brands out there. But when freezer space is limited or you’re looking for a meal on-the-go, a shelf-stable, just-add-water pouch is unbeatable. In literally five minutes with just some boiling water and a stove (or microwave), you have a healthy, delicious meal—as easy to make as Cup Noodles.
Restaurant-level ingredient list!! This is the actual ingredient list for Palak Paneeer: Spinach, Paneer (Milk & Lemon), Tomato, Cream, Onion, Ghee, Salt, Butter, Coriander Powder, Garlic, Cumin, Chili Powder, Turmeric, Cumin Powder, Green Chili, Garam Masala, Rosemary Extract.
That’s it. No crazy added sodium, fillers, or any preservatives—because it was made using freeze-drying technology, The Cumin Club’s meals retain restaurant-quality flavor and nutrition without having to add anything funky.
Where to buy: Online (using their meal plan or on Amazon!) or, as of last month, in 1,000 grocery stores nationwide, including Walmart and Sprouts!
✨ Special Guest ✨ Oren John
If this face doesn’t look familiar… you’re missing out on one of the coolest people on the interwebs. Oren, AKA The Internet’s Creative Director, is the most multi-hyphenate-multi-hyphenates there is—he’s a designer, creative director, marketer, creator, investor, and more with a passion for brand strategy and products. He has worked for and with some of the coolest brands out there, and we trust his judgment + takes immensely (you should too).
Let's dive into his pick—which just so happens to be one of the coolest new product launches that we covered in this week’s episode of The Curious Consumer →
What is it? I picked up the Algae Cooking Clubs Nara Smith collab - its a small batch roasted garlic oil.
Where'd you purchase it, and why that channel? I first saw this brand in Erewhon (as one does), picked up because I thought the concept of algae oil was inherently a little ridiculous, but actually loved it. High smoke point,seed oil alternative. But then as soon as I saw the Nara Smith collab where they were talking to a pain point I have (garlic fingers haha) I immediately got it from their site.
What about this product intrigued you? The influencer collab part (they had Nara Smith in a garlic dress), a brand I’m familiar with, and then a real pain point (I peel garlic all the time and it’s super annoying) -- the trifecta for me!
Why do you love it? I love the taste and the value prop, and then bonus that the box version has an excellent pour spout with a stopper. Bonus points for the cute garlic illustrations!
We are now posting our podcast weekly, diving into the latest stories around consumer brands and retail. Be sure to check out our most recent one here, sponsored by our friends at Glimpse!
Thanks for reading! Anything you think we should try for an upcoming edition of Express Checkout? Email us at nate@expresscheckout.co and jenna@expresscheckout.co
Love this!