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In the short time since Grazas 2022 launch, the wunderkind olive oil slinger has become a standout in a crowded market with its dynamic duo of extra-virgin olive oils: Sizzle for cooking and Drizzle for finishingcleverly packaged in matte-green squeeze bottles. On Tuesday, Graza introduced its third product to the lineup, the high-heat cooking oil Frizzle. Its being sold online as well as in select Whole Foods locations nationwide in squeeze bottles and a company-first nonaerosol spray bottle. Made from the remaining pressed olives from Grazas flagship oils, Frizzle is extracted and refined without the use of chemicals or solvents. The natural refinement process results in a neutral taste and high smoke point, making it a wholly olive-based alternative to seed oils (those being the latest boogeyman of the wellness-industrial complex). Entering the neutral oil market has also allowed Graza to play around with new packaging, something the brand explored last year with its olive oil refill cans. [Photo: Graza] A new spin on neutral oil Graza cofounder and CEO Andrew Benin was well aware of the risks of tinkering with the brand. Why mess with something that’s working? he says. Frizzle may be the new kid on the block, but the products conception is as old as Graza itself. The Graza braintrust had always envisioned three use cases for its oil: frying and high-heat cooking, sautéing, and raw finishing. Frizzle is still made from olives, but dont call it olive oil. Per regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, that title is reserved for the substance directly extracted from the olive fruit (such as Grazas Drizzle and Sizzle). Frizzle, on the other hand, is technically an upcycled by-product made from the spent olives. But unlike some other cooking oils, it isnt chemically refined. After spinning the pressed olives in a high-speed centrifuge, a tapenade-like slurry of flesh, pits, and peels known as pomace is left behindwhat the Graza team lovingly calls olive mush. Once the oil is extracted, the product is naturally refined through multistep filtration and gradual heating, which removes impurities without the use of hexanes, solvents, or deodorants. [Photo: Graza] No seeds, no problem? These common refinement techniques are at the center of an ongoing push against seed oils, the detractors of which range from gently concerned at best to conspiratorial at worst. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the new secretary of Health and Human Services, has been a particularly vocal skeptic of seed oils, suggesting Americans are being “unknowingly poisoned by them. Nutrition experts insist such concerns have been exaggerated. Benin is quick to point out that neutral seed oils have a role to play. By diminishing them, you’re diminishing the people who need to consume them as a functional ingredient in their diet, he says, alluding to the presence of dietarily necessary omega-6 fatty acids that occur in corn oil, sunflower oil, canola oil, and the like. To lump all seed oils into one category, he continues, is as overly generalizing as presuming all olive oil meets the same quality standards. Still, Benin will go to bat for Graza any day of the week. This is a superior product than canola oil because we can back it up with lab data, and taste, he says. But we’re not going to be bashing seed oils as part of our brand. [Photo: Graza] Standing out by blending in Despite conventional wisdom, Benin says, you can fry with extra-virgin olive oil. In fact, he notes that you can fry more, repeatedly, in EVOO than you can in other types of oils. But its capabilities top out around its smoke point of 410 degrees. At that temperature, youre essentially refining the oil yourself, and all of those lovely grassy, bitter notes flame out, making way for an acrid-tasting substance called acrolein. [Photo: Graza] Frizzles 490-degree smoke point makes it optimal for wok cooking, grilling, or searing in a ripping-hot cast iron. But Benin says those capabilities presented some new challengs for the oil aficionados at Graza. How do you sell a product whose defining characteristic is neutrality? Extra-virgin olive oil is known for its variety of tasting notes, whether grassy, peppery, or fruity, due to EVOOs high percentage of antioxidant-rich polyphenols. The refining process breaks down polyphenols, resulting in more neutral-tasting oil. Graza adds 7% of its Sizzle formula to Frizzle post-refinement, replacing some lost polyphenols and adding a soupçon of buttery flavor that Benin says eludes other neutral oil options. “Adding [EVOO] after the Frizzle has been refined means that all the antioxidants from the Sizzle are not affected as part of the refining process,” he says. “We’re adding in the health benefit afterwards.” New oil, new packaging One advantage of refined oil is its longer shelf lifeapproximately three years as opposed to extra-virgin olive oils two (or even one, in some instances). That wiggle room allowed Graza, which has limited its refills to single-use sizes, to introduce a new suite of packaging volumes, all decked out in a lemon-yellow color scheme. Frizzle can be bought in Grazas first at-home jug, a 2-liter vessel with an ergonomic handle that retails for $29.99 exclusively on the companys website. Frizzle also comes in a nonaerosol spray bottleanother Graza firstfor grilling and baking ($6.99). And it wouldnt be Graza without the signature squeeze bottle that put the brand on the map, available in the same 750-milliliter bottle as Sizzle ($14.99). Benin and company have no doubt that Frizzle will stand up to Grazas flagship oils, even if it means expanding its lexicon to include the word neutral. We’re trying to push it, we’re trying to innovate, we’re trying to prove it in our products, he says. It’s been exciting and difficult to orient a company around a new word.”
Category:
E-Commerce
If you are career-minded, you may think applying for a loftier position in another company is the best route. In fact half of millennials expect to leave their current company within a year. But it’s not always the right move. Advancing in your present company may be a smarter move. You already know the culture and the people. If you enjoy them, who is to say that you’d find something better elsewhere? Also, some companies reward loyalty. And why would you want to compete with hundreds of applicants in a chaotic job market? If you are staying, hone your strategy. Follow these five steps to boost your likelihood of advancing. 1. ASK FOR VISIBLE ASSIGNMENTS First, seek out high-profile assignments. You want to be seen as a go-getter. Do this, and your boss and other leaders in the firm will regard you as a creative, productive worker with aspirational goals. Im not talking about doing extra grunt work. I mean seizing opportunities to come up with innovative ideas and initiatives that impress others. Commit to projects that reach beyond your department. Youll open the door to new relationships with potential bosses in other departments. For example, you might lead a fundraising project, or help another executive with her presentation, or volunteer to speak at an International Womens Day event in your company. 2. BUILD YOUR NETWORK AT THE COMPANY It’s important to build your network within the firm. Youll meet and gain the favor of leaders who recognize your talent and initiative. That can lead to important new relationships with strategically placed individuals. Take part in activities where you can meet senior leaders. These include conferences, sports such as company golf tournaments, leadership forums, and training sessions. If there is someone in the company you admire and think youd like to work for, find a way to get onto their calendar. You might have a mutual interest. Or, you might invite them to speak to your team as a guest expert. Be creative in setting up that meeting. Once youve made that contact, broach the discussion about reporting to them. There might be an advertised position or not. Either way, if you want to work in that department go for it, set up a meeting, and prepare to pitch yourself. 3. PREPARE A STRONG PITCH If youre job hunting in your present company, it might seem like overkill to prepare for each encounter. But you must do soeven for conversations with people who may not have a job to offer you at the moment. They may be able to recommend you to others. Your preparation should include a résumé that is polished and geared to opportunities in the company. If someone has agreed to meet with you, youll also want to prepare speaking notes in the form of a well-crafted statement explaining what kind of position you are looking for and why you feel ready for it. And dont forget to write a thank-you note after the meeting. For guidelines on how to create a strong networking pitch, see the chapter on Pitching Yourself inside Your Company. in my book, The Job Seekers Script. Youll discover how to sell yourself within your present company. 4. DONT LET YOUR BOSS GET IN YOUR WAY Its important to get along with your boss. But dont let that person slow you down if you want to advance. A manager who praises your work may not want to see you move to another department. One woman I know had an opportunity to take a VP position elsewhere in the company. That would have been a big step forward since she was a director. But her boss pleaded dont go . . . I need you here. So, she stayed, and after a decade she is still a director. If you have a boss who encourages you to pursue next steps within the company, be thankful. But be wary of a bad boss who tries to block ascent. All the more reason to develop strong network ties that will allow you to get around that roadblock. 5. AVOID COMPLAINING ABOUT YOUR CURRENT ROLE As you have conversations with others and seek to move up the corporate ladder, never complain about your current position. A bad boss is, of course, only one reason for seeking a new position. There are many others. But if you are looking to move up because you are unhappy with your current manager or some other aspect of your job, keep that to yourself. No one wants to hire a complainer. They fear it might be a personality trait. Instead, focus on what you like about your present role, what you have learned from your boss, what a great team of professionals youve had the pleasure of working with. And then look ahead and share your excitement about moving to the next role, whatever it may be. That kind of self-portrayal will get you a potential job offer and it will help you build your career.
Category:
E-Commerce
A $19 strawberry has broken the internet. Over the weekend, several content creators went viral with reviews of one very expensive berry, purchased from the upscale Los Angeles-based grocery chain Erewhon. Apparently its the best-tasting strawberry in the entire world, influencer Alyssa Antoci says in a video that has racked up more than 15 million views. It’s worth noting that Antoci appears to be a social media manager for Erewhon, and her family also owns the store. Wow. That is the best strawberry. Thats crazy, she adds. @alyssaantocii insane original sound – lyss Along with the $19 price tag, the berries from luxury Japanese fruit vendor Elly Amai are individually packaged, set on a small cushion inside a miniature plastic cloche for protectionexactly how one would expect such an expensive berry to be packaged. On its website, the company claims to sell only the “highest-quality fruits from Japans most celebrated farms.” Not everyone is impressed. People in L.A. are so gullible, one commenter wrote. If I dropped $20 on a strawberry, Id probably convince myself it was the best one Ive ever tasted too, wrote another. It does taste good but is it worth the $19? content creator @janemukbangs questioned in a TikTok video with 5.5 million views. (Spoiler alert: It wasnt.) @janemukbangs $19 strawberry from Erewhon #erewhon #foodtiktok #fyp #strawberries original sound – janemukbangs Whether people are willing to pay a premium for Japanese berries or its simply a case of clever marketing, this isnt the first time the celeb-loved L.A. grocery store has made headlines for its pricey products. This month, its a $19 strawberry; last year, it was a $32 bag of specialty ice. In a time when many are struggling to afford even basic groceries, its easy to see why a ridiculously expensive strawberry has rubbed some people the wrong way. Or, as one commenter theorized, Erewhon was 100% started by a group of uni students who wanted to run a social experiment on consumerism. They ended up accidentally creating a successful grocery so now they just watch and laugh.
Category:
E-Commerce
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