Walmart's sales of Patti LaBelle Sweet Potato Pies have skyrocketed after a YouTube video review went viral and has been viewed nearly 2 million times. The big-box retailer is the only seller of the tuberous root-based dessert, and the spike in sales has made it difficult for the company to supply enough of the baked desserts to keep up with the demand for a slice of autumn pie from the "Godmother of Soul."
Last week James Wright "Chanel" quickly became a YouTube star with his musical review of LaBelle's Sweet Potato Pie. Walmart had worked with the Grammy-winning singer to develop the pastry dessert.
The pies sold so quickly in Michigan that Walmart store clerks did not have enough time to mark them with prices and dates. They just handed them to the hungry customers.
Walmart representative John Forrest Ales confirmed to Yahoo Food that the company's sweet potato pies sold nationwide at a rate of one per second in a 72-hour period. It also sells two pumpkin pies per second during November, due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
At the $3.48 price per pie that is about $1 million in potato pie sales during the weekend. In addition, the Patti LaBelle pie is now the most often visited food site at Walmart.com, according to Yahoo.
Walmart was not prepared for the big demand for the Ipomoea batatas dish. In fact, on November 13, Friday, the company's had to find a supplier of around 2 million California sweet potatoes.
During the weekend LaBelle chatted with Wright through Black Entertainment Television (BET). She thanked him for his positive review and praised his singing skills. Wright reported that the phone call from LaBelle would help him have a "great day," according to Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Walmart also invited Wright to one of its over 11,500 stores during the weekend. The company has not stated yet if it will feature the YouTube star in a commercial.
The ancient Romans made the world's first pies. They were sometimes made in "reeds" whose function was to hold the filling, but were not eaten with the filling. The first published pie recipe was for a goat cheese and honey pie with a rye crust.