Oscar Gifting Expert Empowers Small Brands: Behind the Scenes of Distinctive Assets' Nominee Gift Bag

Christi Leonardi, founder and CEO of indie bath and body brand, Hotsy Totsy Haus, is deeply moved to be one of the brands in Distinctive Assets' Everyone Wins Nominee Gift Bag. For the past 20 years, the entertainment marketing company has rewarded Oscar nominees and presenters with an assortment of luxury swag.

Photo byDistinctive Assets

"Distinctive Assets' owner, Lash Fary, is amazing!" said Leonardi. "He took me under his wing in 2019. I debuted in the swag bag in 2020. My business was just scaling, and then the pandemic hit. I personally believe my business would not have grown or survived like it did without his efforts. He has a good eye for brands that are ready to break through the barrier that prevent a lot of smaller brands from being seen."

Leonardi loves how Fary has "respect" for diversity.

"While the goal is to pamper the wonderful and talented entertainers, Lash is really all about making a difference in the world. I know this sounds so cheesy, but it’s not. He really cares about the smaller brands and works hard to help them be seen. He also puts his heart into helping fellow celebrities make a difference with their different causes."

The 2024 nominee gift bonanza features the full line of Miage skincare products, an all-inclusive Swiss getaway for up to ten guests from Chalet Zermatt Peak, a seven-day holistic wellness retreat from the Golden Door, a three-night stay in a private villa from Saint-Barth Paradise, THOR Kitchen luxury kitchen appliances and 10,000 donated meals from v-dog in support of PETA’s Global Compassion Fund.

“We are humbled that our ‘Everyone Wins’ Nominee Gift Bag continues to garner worldwide media attention and spark conversation," enthused Fary. "While our gifts may be famous for being fun, fabulous and unique, they also serve to elevate small businesses, minority-owned brands, female entrepreneurs and companies who give back. This is celebrity marketing with a mission.”

While this gift bag does, as always, have an impressive six-figure value, that is neither Fary's focus nor goal, he noted.

“Just as any A-list actor doesn’t ‘need’ millions of dollars to walk onto a film set, these gifts are given based on the invaluable stardust these nominees can bestow upon a brand," Fary said. "Of course they can afford to buy these things; they are also in a uniquely favorable marketing position. This is a straightforward win/win transaction.”

Lucky nominees will also receive Adonis Arcana men’s grooming and skincare, Antigua Cruz Añejo Cristalino Tequila 100% Pure Agave, AURO WELLNESS Glutaryl topical glutathione, BAGCEIT portable purse seat, BlendQuik Personal Portable Blender, Blush Silks beauty pillowcases, Bored Rebel graphic undershirts, C60 Power Sugar Free Tart Cherry Gummies, a private show with mentalist to the stars Dr. Carl Christman, Potenza RF microneedling by Cynosure, EATABLE, premium gourmet popcorn inspired by the flavors of Happy Hour, ELBOQUE sustainable artisan handbags and backpacks, élevé adaptogen-infused sparkling water, EpicLight Radiant Duo blush + lip balm, Fetcha Chocolates handmade luxury vegan chocolate, Gin Bothy small-batch Scottish gin and Goodal Vitamin C serum + eye gel patch.

Sustainable pillow designer Cate Brown enjoyed expressing her creativity, designing a custom pillow specific to each nominee.

"Being in these gift bags is an incredible coming together of fashion, sustainability and technology! We had so much fun using luxury heritage fashion brands the nominee has been linked to or that represented the character/the movie. We also collaborated with Rainf4ll to incorporate an NFC chip in the pillow."

Photo byCate Brown

By scanning the NFC chip with a smartphone, it unlocks the story behind the pillow, along with the date it was made, the eco-friendly materials and a photo of the original garment it was made from. "The story of the pillow being in the Oscar Nominee’s gift bad is also in the story of the pillow," she enthused.

Jennifer Fontaine, 1MD Nutrition Brand Lead, whose item, LiverMD luxury mocktail kit, is also in the Oscars gift bag, was really impressed with how well her gifting experience went after the Grammys, which Fary also handles.

"What an honor to have our GRAMMYs CardioFitMD 'Beat' Box gift box hand delivered to each and every one of the almost 200 nominated artists at this year's awards ceremony, garnering over 1.2 billion media impressions for our company and our award-winning, cardiologist-formulated product."