Artfully weaving a sense of play in to the snacking and wellness industry, Dada Daily caught our eye with their outrageous and fantastical approach to snacking. Taking visual and ideological inspiration from the Dadaist movement, the likes of Man Ray, Marcel Duchamp and Dorothea Tanning are celebrated by the brand, to name but a few.
Dada Daily’s products range from assorted truffles to cauliflower popcorn florets, yet the spirit of Dada is crafted in to every detail – from packaging, to their digital presence and communications strategy. The brand’s Manifesto uses evocative and inspirational language, elevating snacking to the level of rebellion. They declare their ambition: “Dada is about breaking the rules of what a snack should be… we encourage everyone to be a Dadaist”. Dadaism itself was born out of the politics of the First World War; its adherents wrote extensively against conformity of culture and thought. This sense of rebellion and liberation plays a key role for the brand and the category in which they operate today.
Dada Daily (left) & Glass Tears, Man Ray (right)
The brand’s creator, Claire Olshan, draws heavily on her background in fashion and all things aesthetic. For her, Dada Daily is fundamentally about “stripping down the restrictive nature of the health food industry and getting away from the word ‘no’”. It’s not by coincidence that Dada, translated from Russian, means “yes, yes”. Speaking to Sotheby’s Olshan elaborated: snacking “should not be about someone telling you what to eat.” In a way that almost equates snacking to the emotional and personal experience of viewing a piece of art, she highlights the importance of rule breaking and the freeing of the self.
Dada Daily (left) & Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Dorothea Tanning 1943 (right)
In a category like wellness, which in recent years has been so overwhelmed by notions of restriction, constraint and control, it is refreshing to see an approach from Olshan that is not only humorous and playful, but also thoughtful and smart. These avant-garde snacks have a cultural edge – quickly bridging the gap between the world of food & art – but moreover, we think that they have uncovered a shift in the way that consumers engage (and want to engage) with the snacking industry. Dada Daily breaks free from restriction and worthiness, to say, simply: “yes, yes”.