Case Studies - Amyris, Inc.
Launch and promotion
purecane™is a zero calorie sweetener made from distilled sugarcane. It was introduced by Amyris, Inc. a biotech company in Emeryville, California in 2019. Its introduction and launch was driven by grassroots efforts on a minimal budget and featured the actual product introduced to social media influencers at industry events in several cities, including New Orleans, Austin, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. I drove the packaging and promotional literature as well as event invitations and, working with celebrity chefs and restaurants, developed recipes using purecane in each course. In addition, I worked with product developers to launch gourmet chocolates, baking sweeteners, candy and ice creams. These new products were introduced to social media influencers at special invitation-only events at top restaurants featuring exclusive menus and take home recipe cards and samples in specially designed gift bags I created and distributed to the guests. Menus featured purecane in cocktails, appetizers, main and dessert courses, many featured on Instagram.
Design and social media
To position purecane against its competition, the graphics were designed to appeal to health-conscious youthful consumers seeking a healthy no-calorie alternative and featured a much more colorful, eye-catching palette of bright colors and playful images. Endorsed by the American Diabetes Association, purecane quickly gained momentum on social media populated by the influencers attending our special events. Planning the events, menus and working with celebrity chefs and our celebrity spokesperson, Simon Majumdar of the Food Network, I made sure everything worked as planned. Influencers were encouraged and engaged to populated Instagram and Facebook feeds with recipes and promotional leads leading to a viral social media awareness and subsequent sales momentum.
Note: purecane was registered as a trademark and is always lowercase but the product has been discontinued due to the ongoing bankruptcy by Amyris, Inc.