Clearpoint Agency, a public relations firm in Encinitas, has announced it is providing PR services to San Diego-based Mezo Beverages, makers of nitro-carbonated, ready-to-drink cocktails called Mezo Mezoritas.
Two Mezoritas flavors, passion fruit and pineapple-guava, are now available at 38 Whole Foods Market locations throughout Southern California stretching from Oxnard to San Diego. The rollout is the brand’s largest retail push yet, a Clearpoint statement said.
“Mezo Beverages pairs exceptional products with founders who have the expertise and vision to build a market leader,” said Bonnie Shaw, president, Clearpoint Agency. “Having led PR programs across leading brands, we recognize what a breakout brand looks like, and Mezo is it.”
Mezo Beverages, a licensed international importer, was founded by San Diegans Troy Brajkovich, a filmmaker, and Spencer Johnson, an executive chief. Additional company investors include fifth-generation maestro mezcaleros from the Mexican state of Oaxaca, a statement said.
Mezo has posted a video telling the story of Brajkovich and Johnson, two lifelong friends, surfers and travelers who traveled along the coastlines of Oaxaca, where they found agave succulent plants used to make mezcal, a distilled spirit.
The thick, spiky agave leaves are roasted in earthen ovens over coals and volcanic rock, then fermented with local yeasts and distilled in cooper alembic stills. Once the 100-proof premium mezcal reaches California, it’s blended with fresh ingredients, including organic lime, tropical fruit juices, aromatic botanicals and a light touch of agave nectar.
The result is a cocktail with restrained sweetness, intentional acidity and a softer finish than heavily carbonated seltzers, said a Mezo statement. Mezoritas are designed to be poured over ice or chilled and cracked open at the beach, park or around a bonfire with friends, said Clearpoint.
“From the agave fields of Oaxaca to the California coast, our goal is to produce ready-to-drink mezcal cocktails the right way,” said Brajkovich. “Launching into Whole Foods Market stores across Southern California means a lot because we believe their shoppers care about how products are made and where things come from. Those are the conversations we want to have and the kind of beverages we want to produce.”
Samantha Fletcher, senior category merchant, Whole Foods Market, said in a statement, “Our customers look to us to identify up-and-coming brands that are both flavorful and innovative, while still meeting our quality ingredient standards. The craftsmanship behind the brand and the founders’ direct partnership with the mezcaleros in Oaxaca make Mezo the kind of ready-to-drink brand we’re proud to bring to our customers.”
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PR News recognizes (W)right On Communications
PR News, a public relations industry trade publication, has selected (W)right On Communications (WOC), a San Diego-based public relations firm, for its Agency Elite Top 120 list for the second consecutive year.
The ranking was based on WOC’s innovations, core offerings, client work, culture initiatives and industry outlook, according to Julie Wright, WOC founder.
“It’s happy news and strategically validating,” Wright told Times of San Diego. “Earlier this year, we introduce two specialized PR agency brands, WOC Resonance and WOC Signal. Each was developed to serve a different client type and to represent our expertise more clearly. Our targets were both real human prospects and AI platforms.
“ChatGPT, Claude and Google AI Overviews are now critical intermediaries between brands and their audiences. So, we embraced that and now see our brands consistently referenced by ChatGPT and Gemini for our expertise. We’re also seeing website traffic and leads from AI recommendations. With the PR News honor, it feels like our strategy is landing with PR industry media, too.”
Kaylee Hultgren, associate publisher of content and awards at PR News, said in a statement, “The Agency Elite Top 120 exists to answer a question every brand-side marketer is asking: Who are the agencies truly worth paying attention to? This year’s honorees aren’t just good at PR, they’re good at evolving. They’re adding new capabilities, investing in their people and delivering real, measurable impact for their clients.”
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c3 Communications promoting Holocaust exhibit
San Diego public relations firm c3 Communications, Inc. (c3) reports it has been selected as the agency of record to promote “Remember Us The Holocaust” (RUTH), an upcoming exhibit at the San Diego Central Library, 330 Park Blvd., Downtown San Diego.
Joice Truban Curry, c3 president and CEO, said she and husband Sean Curry have been planning publicity for the past two months.
“The PR campaign we have been executing in eight weeks normally takes four months to do,” said Joice Truban Curry.
The downtown exhibit, presented by RUTH, a San Diego nonprofit, offers visitors the opportunity to experience rare, authentic Holocaust-era artifacts, World War II historical objects, survivor testimony, photographs and personal items, many connected to survivors who rebuilt their lives in San Diego and Southern California. It features 16 life-size cardboard cutouts of survivors, 14 of whom lived in San Diego during their lifetime.
The exhibit, with free admission, opens Sept. 29. It will be open for two years while the nonprofit establishes its permanent home, said organizers.
What makes RUTH’s exhibit different is the combination of rare, authentic artifacts from concentration camps, including Auschwitz-Birkenau, that have been preserved by survivors and by the children of those who perished. The survivor testimonies and personal stories include those with direct ties to San Diego County. The exhibit tells the stories of Jewish survivors as well as others persecuted during recent times.
“We are very grateful to the San Diego County and the Downtown Central Library for giving RUTH a home for the next two years, but we already know this will not be our final destination,” said Dr. Moises Salinas Fleitman, RUTH executive director. “Memory needs an address. San Diego needs a permanent place where Holocaust history can be preserved, studied and passed from one generation to the next. Our goal is to make that permanent museum a reality.”
A statement said the location for the exhibit’s permanent home will be announced Sept 29 at the exhibit’s opening. The exhibit has been on display in Chula Vista, Rancho San Diego and most recently the La Jolla/Riford Library, prior to the downtown library venue.
“Not only are we opening a new exhibit, but we are also a part of the strategic team announcing a permanent home of a dedicated Holocaust Museum in San Diego,” said Curry. “It is humbling and incredible to be a part of shaping the future of a permanent Holocaust museum in San Diego.”
Sandra “Sandy” Scheller, the exhibit curator and RUTH founder and curator, is the daughter of Holocaust survivors Ruth and Kurt Sax. In 2000, Scheller, who grew up in Chula Vista, created the exhibit in memory of her mother, Ruth Goldschmiedova Sax, who passed away in 2018.
One of the items on display is a dress that Ruth’s mother Erna wore during her time inside the infamous Auschwitz Nazi concentration camp. The black, wool gaberdine dress is marked with a white “X” on the back. A cardboard cutout of Ruth Sax is next to the X-marked dress her mother wore.
“My mom said, ‘When I die, either bury me in my mother’s dress or make a museum,’” said Scheller. “History must be preserved and told, never forgotten. We are so grateful to be exhibiting at the beautiful downtown library and welcome past and future patrons. We welcome the community to help make this journey a reality and create a permanent Holocaust museum in San Diego that will be revered for generations.”
For more information, visit https://rememberustheholocaust.org/.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly in Times of San Diego.
