The Meaning Of "Goop" & Other Facts About Gwyneth Paltrow's Booming Business
"Goop" isn't an acronym but it does stand for new age wellness trends and prides itself as being the forefront of popular social directions such as the gluten-free diet. Goop's own Instagram page has 1.6 million followers who can't seem to get enough of the over 7,000 posts that cover topics ranging from skin care to self-care, clothing, crystals, diet, travel, advice, and more.
At the heart of this growing wellness giant is actress and entrepreneur Gwyneth Paltrow. Goop.com's "About" page explains that Paltrow started Goop in 2008 from her home as a "homespun weekly newsletter." The company has grown leaps and bounds since 2008. Today, there are "click and mortar" storefronts and the celeb-loved and celeb-attended "In Goop Health" annual summit which costs upwards of $500 per ticket and is regularly sold out.
But what is Goop exactly? And what's behind the curious name?
When asked by the Los Angeles Times, to explain what Goop is and what it means, the entrepreneur answered, "... I think, at our core, what we’re trying to do is aggregate great information and product that helps people take a short cut to something that will optimize their lives, whether it’s some marriage advice or a great taco place in Santa Barbara or a nontoxic cleanser that works really well."
According to Insider.com, it all began back around 1995 when Paltrow was working on the set of "Jefferson in Paris", a historical-drama film. There, Paltrow began a habit of sorts of asking cast members and crew alike for recommendations for local eateries.
The story goes that Paltrow heard from "branding wizard" Peter Arnell that successful internet companies choose a name with a double "OO" in the middle, Google for example. This nugget of advice went along perfectly with the actress' idea of choosing a name that didn't mean anything but could potentially mean anything. Open to interpretation with a dash of peculiar eccentricity, Paltrow's brainchild, Goop was born. In 2009, Arnell's company took in Goop as a client. In 2018, Paltrow admitted that the idea for the name was at least partly inspired by her initials when she told the Wall Street Journal that the play on her initials was "stupid and funny."
But it's not all stupid sunshine and funny rainbows, at least from where the curious public sits. The company has, at times, had its share of controversy. When Goop has supported products such as "jade vaginal eggs" and encouraged readers to "police their thoughts" and "eliminate white foods" from diets, Goop drew side-eyes from much of the public and haters have come out of the woodwork to sometimes question and sometimes attack the celebrity-backed wellness brand.
When Paltrow and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, whom Paltrow shares her two children, Apple and Moses with, decided to divorce in 2014, Paltrow provided a rather thoughtful yet somewhat confusing statement to her website when she wrote, ""We have always conducted our relationship privately, and we hope that as we consciously uncouple and co-parent, we will be able to continue in the same manner."
The phrase "conscious uncoupling" actually crashed the site and Goop followed up with a 2,000 word explanation for the odd term.
Prior to 2014, Goop.com had served as mostly a wellness advice site. Then, the company took a drastic change into the world of e-commerce which has helped the idea that started off as a newsletter transform into the million dollar enterprise that is today.
In 2014, Goop began selling their own line of vitamins, clothing, and home goods. 2017 marked another huge change for the brand when they broke ground on their first ever brick and mortar store in Los Angeles' Brentwood Country Market. This was also the year that the "In Goop Health" annual summit began. The following year, Goop started a podcast which continues to rise in popularity. Last year, Netflix released a series entitled "The Goop Lab with Gwyneth Paltrow."
What seems crystal clear is that Goop is continuing to thrive. It doesn't seem that Goop minds the controversy which seems attracted to the company at the mere mention of unusual products or seemingly bizarre wellness services. In fact, their website states, "We don't mind being the tip of the spear - in short, we go in first so you don't have to." Goop's Instagram tagline seems to say it all: "Making every choice count. Testing the waters so you don’t have to. Asking all the questions. Read, listen, watch, shop."
Sources: LAtimes.com, Insider.com, express.co.uk, Goop.com
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