Skincare brand The Ordinary collaborated with MSCHF to sell a dozen eggs at $3.37 in NYC amid soaring prices due to a bird flu outbreak, sparking both praise and criticism.
In a city where securing a reasonably priced carton of eggs has become a near-impossible feat, The Ordinary, a skincare brand renowned for its minimalist and affordable products, ventured into uncharted territory. Over the weekend, the brand offered New Yorkers a dozen eggs for just $3.37 at its Nolita and Fifth Avenue boutiques. This move was a collaboration with the art collective MSCHF, known for its unconventional and provocative projects.
The minimalist skincare label famed for its no-nonsense serums and under-$10 price tag cracked open a whole new layer of controversy with the stunt. Packaged in sleek, white cartons labeled with its logo and the tagline “Ordinarily Priced Eggs,” the stunt instantly triggered the kind of digital whiplash most CMOs dream of: viral videos, influencer photo ops, and lines down the block.
“We heard NYC needed eggs,” the brand posted to Instagram. “This weekend, you can get 12 ordinarily priced eggs at our stores for $3.37. No frills, just eggs. While supplies last.”
And just like that, a skincare brand known for vegan, cruelty-free formulations was selling eggs in the middle of an affordability crisis. The price of eggs in New York City has skyrocketed in recent months due to a deadly avian flu outbreak, with some grocery stores listing a dozen eggs for more than $10. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has predicted egg prices could rise over 40 percent this year, prompting some bodegas to start selling “loosies” — a few eggs in a plastic bag — as a more budget-friendly alternative.
Nationally, the average price for a dozen Grade A eggs reached record highs this month, fetching more than $8 a dozen. Prices have since dropped to under $5 a dozen, and while avian flu has been widely blamed, the real culprit is a brittle and overly centralized supply chain that’s efficiently broken, designed for low cost at scale but lacking the resiliency to weather crises.
In response to the crisis, the U.S. government has taken measures to stabilize the egg market. The Trump administration has increased egg imports from Brazil to address rising prices caused by the bird flu outbreak, which has led to the loss of nearly 170 million birds since early 2022. These imported eggs are primarily used in processed foods, allowing more fresh eggs to be available for consumers. Despite these efforts, consumers may not see immediate relief in egg prices due to high Easter demand and potential new outbreaks.
Policymakers are exploring smaller-scale farms as a way to limit disease spread, though such reforms would mean higher prices for consumers. Countries like Canada already follow this model, with more stable pricing and less disease-related disruption. Ironically, despite higher production costs, Canadian egg prices are now 50 percent lower than those in the U.S.
While some saw The Ordinary’s stunt as a cheeky disruption, others found it jarring, particularly given the brand’s ethical identity. The Ordinary is owned by Deciem, which has long positioned itself around ingredient transparency and science-driven, cruelty-free skincare. Its entire brand proposition hinges on purity — not just in formulas, but in philosophy. So for many, the move felt like a betrayal.
“This wasn’t about affordability. It wasn’t about helping people struggling with rising food costs. It was about hijacking a real-world problem for clicks,” chris Kubby, CEO of creative agency Kubbco, said in a LinkedIn post. “The Ordinary is a vegan skincare brand. Their whole message is affordable, no-BS beauty. Science over fluff. That’s their identity. So why are they selling animal products? Because they wanted attention.”
Kubby wasn’t alone in his assessment. Journalist Scarlett Newman reposted the brand’s campaign and added, “If they really want to help put these eggs in lower-income areas like the Bronx.” Others echoed this concern, wondering why the activation took place in two of Manhattan’s wealthiest neighborhoods instead of areas where food insecurity is more acute.
More than a few beauty consumers questioned the logic of the brand selling animal-based products in the first place. Fans and followers flooded the brand’s Instagram comments section with confusion, criticism, and speculation. “Isn’t this a vegan brand?” one asked. Another wrote, “I thought y’all were cruelty-free. What happened to the values?”
It didn’t help that The Ordinary partnered with MSCHF — the Brooklyn-based art collective famous for its clown-red Astro Boy boots and a history of viral provocations. The brand never explicitly stated MSCHF’s involvement, but the wink was clear. This was not a benevolent act of grocery heroism. It was performance art. It was trolling.
Eggs at The Ordinary (a cosmetics store)
— RT (@RT_com) March 24, 2025
What a time to be alive pic.twitter.com/TLAvdnMjzC
For some marketers, that’s the brilliance of it. The stunt generated attention, engagement, and media coverage without the brand having to launch a new product or spend on a major ad buy. For others, it raises questions about the limits of irony and the consequences of bending a brand’s ethics for the sake of a moment.
“You can’t market ethics one day and throw them out the next for shock value,” Kubby said. “That’s not edgy. It’s lazy.”
The controversy arrives at a time when consumers are increasingly demanding consistency from brands. According to a 2023 report from Forrester, 71 percent of U.S. consumers say they prefer to buy from companies that align with their values. Among Gen Z shoppers, that number jumps to 81 percent.
The Ordinary has not issued a formal statement on whether the eggs were ethically sourced or if the campaign will be repeated. It also hasn’t clarified how the decision aligns with its vegan positioning. While the eggs may have sold out in hours, the questions they raised are still lingering.
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