315 backers quickly joined Kori and Matt Wallace’s crowdfunding campaign on kickstarter , helping their ‘Chups project surpass their $12,000 goal by nearly $4K with more than three weeks to go. The Wallace’s ketchup recipes feature everything but what Americans have typically expected from their ketchup: tomatoes. In a Saveur article “Beyond Tomatoes: Four Great Fruit Ketchups,” writer Marisa McClallan provides some ketchup history and challenges readers to “[t]hink bigger than tomatoes: the ketchup possibilities are limitless.” Washington, DC based Kori and Matt Wallace have bypassed tomatoes as their necessary ingredient. The owners answered a few questions regarding their successful ‘Chups campaign:
Erin: How did you use social media to ignite your campaign?
Kori & Matt: We surpassed our goal in about 10 days, so we’re obviously thrilled with Kickstarter! We had a blast making the video (which we worked on for a couple weeks, off and on). We have reached a huge audience through a couple of initial press releases and speaking with other folks in the media who have read about us. We have also leveraged facebook and twitter a great deal. Social media can be very powerful.
Erin: Why fruit ketchup?
Kori & Matt: Tomato ketchup has a place in nearly every restaurant and pantry in America. This iconic sauce has seen little change over the last 150 years … until now. Our line of fruit ketchups feature five original flavors: cherry, blueberry, peach, mango, and plum. Each variety has the same tangy and sweet zip of tomato ketchup, but offer a much wider range of food pairings for all occasions. So what makes ‘Chups, ketchup? Tomatoes are only one ingredient in ketchup. Similarly, ‘Chups are made with different fruits (instead of tomatoes), combined with our own blend of vinegar, spices and other natural ingredients.
Erin: What are your near future plans for ‘Chups?
Kori & Matt: We are in the process of reaching out to restaurant groups, catering companies, and markets about carrying ‘Chups. We are planning to begin working out of Union Kitchen [a food incubator in DC] in March.
Erin: When and where will ‘Chups be available?
Kori & Matt: We hope ‘Chups will hit store shelves and select eateries in the DC area by April. In the mean time, we will be working hard to fulfill rewards to all of our backers, which we greatly appreciate!
The funds raised on Kickstarter will allow the Wallace’s to take ‘Chups operations to the Union Kitchen Food Incubator i. Food regulations require that all consumer food products must be produced in commercial licensed kitchens which may drive costs up to $50,000. By working with Union Kitchen ‘Chups will be able to meet their goal and hopefully supply restaurants, caterers and local retailers.
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Erin Hobey taught college literature and writing for several years. She currently serves on the board at Hopewell, a therapeutic farm community in Cleveland. She graduated from Brown, was a Bosch Fellow in eastern Germany, and then earned her MA from Dartmouth. Food, fashion and film crowdfunding particularly interest Erin; she looks forward to exploring creative projects. Erin may be contacted via email at CrowdfundInfo@gmail.com or Twitter.
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