With their home-brewed Kombucha, Brewery Vermeersen offers a healthy and sustainable alternative to soft drinks, perfectly aligning with the growing demand for healthy choices. This innovative drink is both alcohol-free and flavorful. Under the name “Ohm My,” Vermeersen brews an innovative, “shelf-stable” Kombucha with live cultures. During Concert at SEA, they tested whether visitors liked the taste and which visual branding appealed most. Three Kombucha flavors, including Ohm My, were blind-tasted and ranked by taste preference. Feedback was also shared for each flavor. Additionally, visitors ranked 4 different visual branding styles.

612 visitors tasted Vermeersen’s Kombuchas. They shared their opinions using Innofest’s “unfiltered criticism form.” The three Kombucha flavors all scored averagely, with strong personal preferences per visitor. There were mixed reactions to Ohm My’s ginger flavor; some visitors found it too dominant, while others found it too subtle. 32% of all participants ranked Ohm My as number 1. Few participants indicated that they already drank Kombucha, but it was notable that among Kombucha drinkers, Ohm My scored significantly higher than the other two options. In terms of branding, the ‘Party’ style (45% at number 1) scored slightly better than ‘Mainstream’ (39% at number 1). Both styles scored significantly better than the other two styles. Many visitors were willing to leave their email addresses, which was an unexpected positive outcome of the test.

Following the test, Vermeersen will scale up production and develop more Kombucha flavors to meet different taste preferences. Since the festival audience was in a festive, cheerful mood, this may have influenced the preference for the ‘Party’ style. Therefore, the test expert recommended a follow-up test in a different hospitality setting. The branding will be revised towards a more exuberant style, based on visitor preferences. Hospitality venues will be the primary market for Vermeersen’s Kombucha, with a focus on glass as a sustainable packaging. They will continue to test through small pilots and digital feedback, for example, using QR codes on bottles.