A single Flamin' Hot Cheeto, shaped like the iconic Pokemon, Charizard, has been sold at a whopping price of Rs 77 lakh ($90,000) to an unnamed buyer at an auction. The three-inch-long Cheeto has an uncanny resemblance to the Pokemon character from the anime franchise and comes in a customised box.
Though the entire history of the unique Cheeto remains a mystery, it did end up with Paul Bartlett, who owns a sports memorabilia and trading card shop in Georgia, according to a report in the New York Times. Mr Bartlett bought the 'Cheetozard' on eBay where the asking price was Rs 43,134 ($500) but he ended up paying only Rs 30,194 ($350).
After receiving the plastic-encased snack in 2019, Mr Bartlett put it in a safe and forgot about it. In fact, it was only last year that he remembered its existence and posted a photo on Instagram which went viral overnight.
While several collectables companies declined to create a custom case for the Cheetozard, Mr Bartlett turned to his friend Jordan Tkacsik for help who developed a four-part case to keep the item safe from structural damage, free of charge.
On February 10, the Cheetozard went under the hammer with Goldin Auctions keeping the initial bid of Rs 21,567 ($250). By the evening of March 1, the price had climbed to Rs 1.5 lakh ($18,000). After a bidding war that lasted into the early morning hours of March 2, it sold for Rs 63.1 lakh ($72,000) plus rs 1.3 lakh ($15,840) in fees.
"Goldin specialises in rare and one-of-a-kind collectibles, and the Cheetozard is exactly this. Part of what makes this item so fun and unique is that it bridges two fandoms - Pokemon and Cheetos," said Dave Amerman, the head of consignment at Goldin.
Cheetos, the snack brand owned by PepsiCo subsidiary Frito-Lay, responded to Goldin's Instagram post about the sale with a "two eyes" emoji.
"Cheetos are crafted with individual care and designed to be unique, and the 'Cheetozard' is no exception. It's a longstanding tradition for fans to search for fun, interesting shapes and sizes inside every Cheetos bag, and we always love to see what they find," Tina Mahal, the senior vice president of marketing at PepsiCo Foods told CNN.
Obscene money for 'art'
The Charizard-shaped Cheeto is not the only food item to be sold for an obscene amount in recent times. Last year, Justin Sun, a cryptocurrency founder, splurged Rs 52.4 crore ($6.2 million) on buying an artwork featuring a banana duct-taped to a wall. Mr Sun competed with six others but emerged victorious in the auction, which was held at Sotheby's auction house in New York.
However, a few days later, Mr Sun devoured the pricey banana whilst giving a speech and calling the artwork, curated by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan "iconic". He also drew parallels between art and cryptocurrency, whilst describing the taste of the fruit.
