Premier burger chain Grill’d has struck an unconventional partnership with social media stars The Inspired Unemployed to launch a new plant-based burger product.
Jack Steel and Matt Ford, the duo behind The Inspired Unemployed, have put a colourful twist on Grill’d’s marketing campaign, celebrating the new meat-free Impossible Burger range in a series of videos available on OnlyFans.
Burger-themed videos, available on Grill’d OnlyFans page, show the comedy duo eating the “juicy” burgers in a video room. The videos riff on the kind of sexually explicit content that the subscription-based video platform became renowned for during the pandemic.
“We get that when people think of plant-based burgers, they think of dry, bland meat. We wanted to show everyone that the new Grill’d Impossible burgers are just as juicy, saucy and meaty as ever,” The Inspired Unemployed said.
The social media stars have developed a cult following of more than 1.2 million young Australians on Instagram who have taken to the duo’s offbeat comedy sketches.
The Grill’d burger chain falls under the premium end of Australia’s $8.5 billion burger restaurant industry, with the 145-strong network of restaurants known for their RSPCA-approved chicken burgers, plant based options and beer and wine.
The launch of the Impossible Burger range makes Grill’d the first national restaurant group in Australia to sell the Impossible Burger pattie, which first launched in the United States five years ago.
The range includes four new burgers priced between $13.50 to $16.50: Impossibly Simply Grill’d, Impossible Vegan Cheeseburger, Impossible Garden Goodness and Impossible Australian.
The pattie is a product by US plant-based burger startup Impossible Foods, which raised $US300 million ($432.7 million) in Series E funding before the pandemic, with celebrity investors including Jay-Z, Katy Perry, Serena Williams backing the raise.
Simon Crowe, Grill’d founder and managing director, said he was “thrilled” to offer Impossible burgers which taste similar to beef despite being 100% meat free.
“You only have to ask The Inspired Unemployed — these burgers are unbelievably mouthwatering, delicious and made for people who love meat,” he said.