Only those Oscar nominees who win in their categories will go home with a bronze statuette, but all actors and directors who are nominated for awards will receive a complimentary bag full of expensive goodies.
The Oscars haven't given ceremony attendees or nominees official gift bags since 2006, when the Academy nixed the longstanding tradition, under scrutiny from the IRS. The tax agency insisted celebrities were responsible for paying taxes on the gifts, should they choose to accept them.
Since then, enterprising marketing guru, Lash Fary, founder of LA-based marketing firm Distinctive Assets, has been filling the swag void in an effort to get brands' products in front of some of the world's most influential consumers.
Dubbed the "Everyone Wins" gift bag, the freebies are not affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, but the bags' contents are still taxable.
The nominees, most of whom are well-known celebrities earning millions of dollars a year, are often the recipients of lavish gifts from brands seeking their endorsements. The six-figure swag bag is also a valuable opportunity for small, lesser-known brands to raise their profiles and gain buzz-generating seals of approval from Hollywood's elite, according to 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," Fary said in a statement provided to CBS MoneyWatch.
"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. 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," he added.
Fary offers the bags to the 25 actors and directors who are nominated for Academy Awards. This year, nominees in the acting categories include Colman Domingo, Jeffrey Wright, Lily Gladstone, Carey Mulligan, Bradley Cooper, Ryan Gosling, Annette Bening and others. Christopher Nolan and Martin Scorsese are among the directors who are nominated for Oscars this year. Typically, Fary either delivers or ships the baskets to recipients' homes or offices.
The gift bags for Oscar nominees this year are worth a total of $178,000, according to Fary, but only if recipients redeem all the certificates and credits offered to them — which no gift bag recipient has ever done, he said.
The certificates have zero value if the recipients don't redeem them, Fary said. "A lot of the gifts aren't redeemed because of scheduling alone, but there are usually a couple of people who take a trip."
Fary's most expensive gift bag for Oscar nominees was valued at $225,000, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Handed out to Oscar-nominated stars and directors at the 2020 Academy Awards, the gift bags contained among other A-list treats, a 24k-gold vape pen, smart bra and cruise to Antartica.
This year's freebies, collectively valued at $178,000, include luxurious travel experiences, home renovation opportunities, beauty products, health and wellness tools, food and beverage samples and more. The priciest items include a stay at Chalet Zermatt Peak, a luxury chalet in the heart of Zermatt, Switzerland, a popular European ski destination. The experience is valued at $50,000, according to Fary, and includes daily meals and massages, among other perks.
"It's one of the top three most expensive gifts we've ever given," Fary told CBS MoneyWatch.
Also included in the gift bags is a three-night stay at a private villa in St. Barts, at Saint-Barth Paradise. Week-long rentals start at $4,080 and go up to $34,000, according to the company's website. The fancier villas offer beach views, infinity pools, a fitness center and other amenities.
All-expenses paid travel packages including stays at luxury hotels around the world, are among the most expensive gift-bag items for red-carpet VIPs at the Oscars.
The most expensive travel-package ever included in an "Everyone Wins" Oscar-nominee gift bag was 2020's Antarctic cruise, valued according to Forbes at the time, at $78,000.
Travel and leisure
Home
Beauty
Charity
Health and wellness
Food and beverage
Clothing and accessories
Experiences
Books
Other items
Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News Streaming to discuss her reporting.
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