While most of the world looks forward to January to celebrate the turning over of a new year, those of us in the deli, dairy, bakery, and specialty foods industry can’t wait to gather again at the epic Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, California. And, if you missed the initial launch of Cypress Grove’s Fresh Goat Cheese Cups late last year, let this serve as the sign pointing you towards Cypress Grove’s booth as your first stop on the expansive show floor.
I chatted with Christy Khattab, Director of Marketing, to get even more details on the product that is sure to be a show highlight this year and to learn what else the cheesemaker has up its sleeve in 2019.
“The Fresh Goat Cheese Cups first launched with a Whole Foods two region exclusive in July 2018 and became available to all retailers nationwide in September. We’re still in the early stages of the national launch, so we’re in a ‘wait and see’ period, but so far consumers say they love the taste, snack-ability, spread-ability, and price point—and we’re thrilled!” Christy shared with me. “Each cheese is jam-packed with high quality flavors that help consumers cut down on time in the kitchen and enjoy a healthy, flavorful cheese as fast as they can open the lid and peel off the foil.”
The goat cheese has a fromage-blanc style that gives the cheese a higher moisture content and a creamy, spreadable texture. The line also doubles as a high protein snack (12 grams of protein per cup) with a clean ingredient list of 8 ingredients or less per flavor. Christy noted what really makes the line so special is that whether consumers toss it, dip it, spread it, or snack it, the usage options are only limited by their imagination, which doubles the fun these cups offer.
“It’s like a choose your own adventure!” Christy joked. “We also chose the cheese names and packaging to be evocative of the decade of Cypress Grove’s inception: the ’80s. The cup packaging has three components: a plastic lid, a plastic cup, and a removable paper wrap that has a storytelling feature inside. The packaging not only protects the integrity and quality of the cheese but is also made of recyclable materials. And, the fun names and packaging colors pop in the case and give consumers another reason to try something new.”
The new Fresh Goat Cheese Cups are available in 4-ounce resealable cups in packs of 12 and are offered at an accessible MSRP of $4.99 to allow new and existing consumers to try Cypress Grove.
But this line isn’t the only draw to stopping by Cypress Grove’s booth. In addition to the Fresh Goat Cheese Cups, Cypress Grove is also debuting Cheeseboards for Dinner, a yearlong campaign the company is exclusively kicking off at WFFS.
“We’re introducing something familiar—cheeseboards—as a fresh and accessible option for a weeknight meal, but with a Cypress Grove twist. By taking something that’s often thought of as fussy and overly complicated and breaking it down to the basics, we’re adding a bit of effortless luxury to the everyday and solving the problem of ‘what’s for dinner?’” Christy explained. “This campaign easily lends itself to cross-promotion at the retail level, allowing retailers to promote other food items that fit within the Cheeseboards for Dinner concept. Our marketing team will be on fire promoting this campaign across all channels, from influencers, events, in-store demos, shopping lists, recipes, and everything in between—but we can’t give it all way just yet, so stay tuned!”
If you want more of a sneak peek, stop by booth #2243 on January 13-15th to be dazzled by some serious Cypress Grove razzle. I’ll see you there!
