It's one of those business ideas you simultaneously can't believe are real and also kick yourself for not coming up with yourself. It's the Pop It Pal, a silicone rectangle filled with fake pus to simulate that gross-but-satisfying act of popping a pimple. The thing has only been on the market for a few weeks and it already has Fast Company declaring it "the next Fidget Spinner."
This is bound to grab the attention of anyone who's been hooked on Dr. Pimple Popper's videos. The toy is definitely for those drawn to the vicarious act of relieving that pressurized bubble and letting what's inside ooze out.
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OK, to be honest, writing that sentence made me throw up in my mouth a little bit. I do not get the appeal of those videos. But I do confess to enjoying popping my own zit or two, even though I know it's absolutely awful for my skin — and I may even have a few scars to prove it. Other people's skin and pus makes me gag, though. Could it be that possessing my own synthetic pimple pack could replace that impulse entirely? That's what the creators hope.
"How awesome would it be if we could make a pimple that felt real and the pop was huge, just like those videos we watch?" Summer Pierce asked her husband one day, according to the origin story on the Pop It Pal site. Billy Pierce agreed and got to work making that happen.
The $19.99 kit comes with the silicone "skin" with 15 pores already clogged and waiting to be popped, plus there's also a bottle of the all-natural "pus" and a tool with which to refill the Pop-It Pal. Just based on concept and advance hype alone, the toy is in high demand. The site warns that, at the moment, the wait for orders is about six weeks for U.S. delivery and nine for international.
Besides saving the skin of habitual pickers, the Pop It Pal purports to do a little more good in the world, by donating a portion of proceeds to charities that "support kindness and the anti-bullying movement." Most importantly, though, this pal hopes to save our skin.