Reigniting A Local Restaurant's Brand
Oakfire Pizza & Italian
Situation
Oakfire Pizza was founded in Lake Geneva, WI, in 2015 with a passion for authentic Neapolitan pizzas. In 2020, the company expanded to a new location in Kenosha, WI, called Oakfire Pizza & Italian, with a refreshed brand and menu offering a variety of Italian dishes beyond pizza.
Despite being in a prime location and the success of its Lake Geneva location, Oakfire Pizza & Italian needed to increase community awareness in Kenosha of its unique culinary experience and position itself as an upscale, yet welcoming dining destination.
Opportunity
As Oakfire Pizza & Italian leaned into its new brand and menu, they planned to organize a grand reopening event to showcase their expanded menu and new space. The company enlisted Kane as a public relations partner to help tell its story and drive sales. Kane aimed to provide a high-touch public relations program that generated awareness and excitement about Oakfire Pizza & Italian and attracted new customers to the Kenosha location.
Approach
Kane developed a theme for the event, “Oakfire Reignited,” distributed a pitch and press release to local and regional media and invited the Kenosha and surrounding community members to attend. Kane developed a grand reopening Plan that included the following key activities:
Developed a media list including key media partners and influencers in Kenosha and surrounding areas
Crafted key messages used for media outreach as well as promotional marketing materials and social content
Developed and distributed a pitch and press release
Invited key community partners such as the Racine Area Manufacturers and Commerce, UW-Parkside, Shepherds College, Carthage College, etc.
Conducted influencer outreach to garner social media buzz before and after the event
Secured RAMAC ribbon-cutting
Developed run of show to organize Oakfire Reignited event details and activities
Assisted with event coordination including decor (balloons, signage)
Results
Following Kane's proactive media outreach and event coordination, Oakfire Reignited garnered media coverage, attracted new and existing customers and unveiled Oakfire’s expanded menu and new space. On event day, customer attendance and sales exceeded the restaurant’s average.
Pre-event media placements from CBS58 and Kenosha News previewed the event with over 370k views.
Kane secured presences from social media influencers and attendance from Carthage College, UW-Parkside and RAMAC.
250 customers attended Oakfire Reignited, exceeding the restaurant's average traffic of 175 customers on a Friday night.
Sales for the event totaled $6060, comprising 88% of the day’s total sales.
Every customer received Oakfire passports.
14 customers signed up for the Oakfire loyalty program, exceeding the daily average of 5 sign-ups.
