Gigi and Bella’s father’s HADID Caviar announces its support in the fight against AIDS
What part do Gigi and Bella Hadid, along with caviar—also known as the ‘food of the gods’—play in the fight against AIDS? It may sound pretty far-fetched right now, but let me explain. In October 2020, Mohamed Hadid, the father of two of the world’s most famous supermodels, Gigi and Bella, announced the launch of his latest venture, HADID Caviar.
Quickly proclaimed as “the world’s most desirable caviar” by some, the luxury caviar company recently made waves for a different reason—its participation in the fight against AIDS. In May 2021, HADID Caviar announced its collaboration with amfAR, a world-famous nonprofit organisation dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of AIDS-related public policy. Since 1985, amfAR has invested nearly $600 million in its programmes and has awarded more than 3,500 grants to research teams worldwide.
From now on, HADID Caviar will be donating 5 per cent of the profits from the sale of its products to amfAR. “Part of our mission statement is to give something back to the global community. One way we are doing this is by supporting amfAR and its innovative research aimed at making AIDS history and bringing an end to the COVID-19 pandemic,” reads the company’s website.
We spoke to HADID Caviar’s CEO Edward Gant about the launch of the company and its contribution to amfAR. “The company was founded in the midst of the pandemic in 2020 after two years of extensive market research. I have been personally involved in the seafood industry for more than 15 years alongside my family being in this industry for over 30 years. Since the beginning of the brand, Mohamed has been very enthusiastic about HADID Caviar and he is involved on a daily basis in the strategic decisions of the company.”
As the first celebrity-owned caviar brand, Gant told us it shouldn’t (and couldn’t) be considered as just another caviar brand. “We bring a different approach to the caviar market, educating our clients on what good caviar should taste like and combining it with a more minimal design modernising the whole industry.” Many celebrities including Kris Jenner, Martha Stewart, Lindsey Lohan, Elizabeth Hurley, Alexander Ludwig, Omari Hardwick and many others have already endorsed it. “But the first and most important step for us is to make people understand that the best quality caviar is not salty and hasn’t got a fishy taste to start with,” Gant added.
HADID Caviar offers a wide range of products, taking form in different editions representing separate species. “Each of the editions/species is completely different to the others in terms of colour, texture, roe size and taste,” explained Gant. When asked which one he would recommend for someone who’s never tasted caviar before, Gant told us, “Taste is something personal but for someone who hasn’t tasted it before, it’s better to start with our Silver Edition and Gold Edition as both have a more balanced taste that suits most people. Then experimenting with the other editions is part of the whole experience.”
When it comes to caviar connoisseurs—anyone here?—Gant advised them to go for “Beluga caviar, so our Black Diamond Edition.” As the conversation moved on to HADID Caviar’s pledge to donate 5 per cent of its profits to support amfAR’s AIDS research, we had to ask Gant, “why this organisation in particular?” He answered, “Mohamed and I both donate to several charities but not many charities want to be associated with brands. amfAR was very interested from the beginning and since we already had a good relationship with the team, it was our first option.”
HADID Caviar clearly states on its website that it strongly intends to give something back to the global community. Gant further stressed this point, “Every single donation matters and we endeavour to help in any way we can so that amfAR can achieve its targets. We are also looking into sponsoring their events and promoting them through our social media channels to increase awareness surrounding AIDS research.”
As a fairly new brand, HADID Caviar has already achieved a lot, especially during a year where most of the world was under strict lockdown restrictions. “Growing globally is our first target for the following months,” Gant added. “We are also working on the development of a wider range of products around caviar-like smoked Sturgeon, caviar crackers, caviar butter and caviar flavoured potato crisps.”
And if, like most of us, you can’t afford to spend a couple hundred bucks on quality caviar, why don’t you follow HADID Caviar’s lead and support amfAR‘s innovative research with whatever method is most convenient for you?
