In 2015, PRGN members The Fearey Group was hired by LYFE Kitchen to manage their external relations and public relations program. As LYFE Kitchen began opening restaurants throughout California, The Fearey Group was tasked with creating unique opportunities to get the media, community and social media influencers in the door at locations in all the new markets. To maximize success, Fearey teamed up with PRGN members Landis Communications Inc. (LCI) and The Hoyt Organization to collaborate on project execution and local support.

Strategies

To increase awareness and attention of new LYFE Kitchen stores in Cupertino and Playa Vista, Caifornia, the PRGN team sought to conduct media outreach and proactive media relations, organize a YELP Elite dinner and organize of a media dinner. To do so, the team created a grand opening program that reimagined the traditional “ribbon cutting” ceremony for restaurants. Outreach was conducted to community members including local chambers of commerce, elected officials, neighborhood business and local high school and colleges for involvement in the opening ceremonies. The team hosted a High School Newspaper Media Tour at the Cupertino location to allow local high school journalists the opportunity to interview LYFE Kitchen Executives, which local press were invited to cover. They also commissioned a Stanford University acapella group to create the new LYFE Kitchen “jingle” for debut at the opening events. The new locations additionally hosted all-inclusive YELP Elite events for top foodies to increase buzz and social media awareness. Instead of a traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony, a “Brussel’s sprout cutting ceremony” took its place.

Results

The PRGN team secured 20 proactively sought-after news stories and hosted two YELP Elite events that yielded 63 positive comments in one night for the Cupertino location.

  • National coverage included articles in The Huffington Post and The Daily Meal.
  • Local coverage included articles in the San Jose Mercury News and the San Francisco Examiner and a live cooking segment on KTVU (FOX-Oakland).
  • The Yelp Elite event helped to create a constant online conversation about LYFE Kitchen.