Web3 Roundup: Vegan Rob’s Launches Token, Perfy Announces NFT Loyalty Program

Vegan Rob’s Launches Token, Announces Metaverse Ambitions

Plant-based snack brand Vegan Rob’s is looking to battle world hunger with a new cryptocurrency, Vegan Rob’s Token (VRT), announced this month.

Developed in partnership with Nick Dazed, founder of the Tigerqueen cryptocurrency, VRT will launch later this month on the UniSwap exchange and will be tradeable on the Ethereum blockchain. According to the company, a portion of the proceeds from every transaction involving VRT will automatically go into a charity fund to support nonprofit group Feeding America, alongside other charities including St. Jude and The Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Speaking to New to the Street TV last week, Vegan Rob’s President Harry Ehrlich, who is spearheading the project, said VRT will also help introduce more transparency to the company by integrating trackable blockchain technology.

Ehrlich said Vegan Rob’s is also looking to work with other CPG brands to create co-branded products through the VRT platform.

“A lot of our consumers off the bat didn’t realize why we were getting into crypto,” Ehrlich told New to the Street. ”The reason why we wanted to get into cryptocurrency is because it allows us to take what we are doing and make it on a much larger scale.”

Beyond the currency, Vegan Rob’s is also looking to explore additional opportunities within the web3 space, including NFTs that act as monthly snack subscriptions, and a DAO and metaverse integration that could include a virtual supermarket among.

VRT and Vegan Rob’s CEO Rob Ehrlich did not immediately return requests for comment.

Perfy Announces NFT-Based Loyalty Program

Functional soda startup Perfy has announced plans for an NFT-based consumer loyalty program set to launch next month.

Perfy founder and CEO Vasa Martinez announced the upcoming program on his LinkedIn profile last month and, reached today by phone, said it will launch sometime within the next two to three weeks. NFT holders will have access to discount pricing on Perfy products, exclusive merchandise and other benefits based on which of five different tokens they own.

The NFT drop will include 1,000 tokens, beginning with 500 bronze tier cards that will be available first come, first served for prior Perfy customers. Bronze token holders will then be able to level up to Silver (250 tokens), Gold (125), Platinum (75) and Diamond (50) tiers by purchasing more cases of Perfy. According to Martinez, those who move to the next tier will still own their lower level tokens but will be able to sell them on the open market; Perfy plans to donate all proceeds and royalties it receives from token sales.

“This way there’s an incentive to continue buying Perfy,” Martinez said. “Strategically as a marketer, and as a founder, lifetime value is an important thing to me. And when I acquire a customer through organic social or Twitter or LinkedIn, because I’m not spending money on ads, I want them to be incentivized to make that next purchase.”

As an added bonus, Martinez said, web3 loyalty programs are also more affordable and easier for a startup brand than working with traditional third party program providers, and that he was able to create the system himself with the aid of software.

Special offers will also be extended to holders of Doodles NFTs, which became one of the top NFT projects worldwide after launching in October. According to Martinez, who owns a Doodles token that he has used in packaging and marketing materials, Perfy has not officially partnered with the NFT creator but has received the personal blessing of at least one of its founders to market to the Doodles community.

One upcoming benefit for loyalty members and Doodles holders is access to a limited time flavor: Dr. Perfy. The soda is set to launch later this year and select cans will feature the image of Martinez’s Doodle character with which, under the company’s holder’s rights agreement, he is allowed to make up to $100,000 in profit through commercial use.

“It’s a way for me to launch a flavor and do something different,” he said. “Right now, there’s a lot of [beverage] brands launching flavors …exclusively [by] SMS and email. I wanted to take that one step deeper as an early brand, and I want to only have a limited edition access presale to people who are Doodle holders, or Perfy loyalty card holders.”

The loyalty launch comes as Perfy is also making its IRL debut, rolling out now into select Shop Rite stores and all Foxtrot locations, in addition to various independent accounts.

To support the expansion, Perfy is also preparing to close an investment round which will include celebrity and athlete investors, he added. One name already on board is Dr. Ryan Lowry, author of The Ketogenic Bible and CEO of ketogenic.com. Martinez hopes to emphasize Perfy’s position as a better-for-you beverage with metabolic health benefits in its messaging.

“My strategy is to build demand online, drive action in store, and then drive lifetime value or retention by people who love it and want to stock up via the website,” he said. “I’m not using the website as an acquisition channel. I’m using it as a retention channel.”

Mid-Day Squares Nixes NFT Plans

Chocolate brand Mid-Day Squares has canceled a previously announced NFT project, citing a need to focus on its core business.

Earlier this year, the company said it would release 500 NFTs entitling holders to claim a physical VHS tape featuring a music video produced by the company ridiculing candy giant Hershey. However, in a video posted to Instagram this month, Mid-Day Squares announced it would not be going forward with the launch, despite already going through the process of creating the VHS tapes, claiming that the project was pulling resources away from the core CPG business.

Another significant factor in the decision? The company said it has squashed its beef with Hershey after co-founder Jake Karls appeared on a panel with members of the Hershey team, leaving the diss track music video out of date.

More Web3 News from the Food and Beverage Industry:

• Extra virgin olive oil producer Certified Origins announced plans to further integrate Oracle Blockchain and Internet of Things (IoT) technology into its production process in order to improve supply chain traceability.
• Twisted Tea Hard Iced Tea has partnered with web3 platform Sesame3 to create a single NFT which will be given away to consumers who submit a photo of themselves through the brand’s website. The winner will have their photo printed onto the back label of up to 100 million Twisted Tea cans.
• The Wall Street Journal reported this month that a bottle of Champagne Avenue Foch featuring the image of a “Bored Ape Mutant” sold for a record $2.5 million at auction. The buyers were identified as Italian cryptocurrency investors and brothers Giovanni and Piero Buono.