Greater Los Angeles Walk to Defeat ALS Sponsored by P♡M Wonderful

Sunday, October 26, was a warm, clear, sunny day here in Pasadena, Ca. Perfect weather to say the least. Over one thousand supporters gathering in central park for a fundraising walk to benefit the ALS Association of Greater Los Angeles. The Walk to Defeat ALS Sponsored by P♡M Wonderful is a one mile walk around Old Pasadena, starting and ending at Central Park, Pasadena.
The morning started out a little earlier than planned. While having breakfast across from the park, I noticed volunteers walking around with big bottles of P♡M and they had begun taking bottles to different areas of the event, “Tasting” the P♡M before I had the chance to get there for set up. The refreshment/food tent was a large octagonal tent in the middle of the park with our P♡M table set up perfectly, facing the stage and the large crowds.

The event went fairly smooth after an early and rocky start. I was told that the P♡M was unloaded from their truck around 7 am. I arrived at the tent just before 8 am, disappointed to see that volunteers left the P♡M on the grass in the sun. They did provide the ice which was very much needed for this outdoor event. I spread two 20 pound bags of ice under our table and began to move all the P♡M out of the sun. I was informed by Stephanie that the tasting cups would be provided by the ALS Association, however they seemed unaware that they had to provide them. I had to run to Smart and Final to buy 1200 tasting cups. Returning only to notice more bottles missing. Quite a few people were drinking it before I could set up.
P♡M was by far the most popular kid on the block. Even more popular than the Laker Girls! The walkers had a choice between Water, RockStar Juiced Orange, P♡M and Trader Joe’s Italian Volcano Blood Orange Juice. Throughout the event, many people kept coming back to ask if I could sell them a bottle, I kindly let them know where they could buy P♡M and “these bottles are for everyone here at the event, however I would be happy to fill up a larger cup or an empty water bottle before the walk.” I also told them “P♡M is great for sustained energy, and P♡M tastes better than those sugary energy drinks! It’s 100% P♡M.” People were so excited to see that I was willing to give them more than just a taste.
From the moment the signs went up a constant gathering of people surrounded the table. Many people asking if they could purchase the bottles after tasting it was very encouraging. I was serving 3 oz portions of P♡M 100% Pomegranate Juice. It was surprising to see how many people have never tried P♡M but recognized the logo and even more surprising to see how many have never even heard of P♡M. I would have to estimate that at least 65% of the people at the event had not tried it before with more than half of them not knowing of P♡M. About 15% said they drank P♡M on a regular basis, 10% said they love it but they could not afford it as an everyday drink. Remaining 5% was a mix of non tasters for various reasons. One individual was weary of the carb content, stating that she is diabetic and did not want to “risk it”. Another stated he was allergic to pomegranates, how unfortunate.
While the response to the tasting was very positive there were a few individuals that disagreed with the flavor or the viscosity of the juice, one gentleman stating “it’s to thick for my pallet, I can’t down it.” A couple of people said it was too tart for them. However most of the tasters really enjoyed the flavor, and were imagining what else hey could mix it with. I heard a number of mixes from apple juice to whiskey to soy milk smoothies. A number of questions were being asked by a lot of attendees. While the most common question was “Where can I buy P♡M?” or “What are Antioxidants?” I had a few people ask “How does P♡M compare to Mona-Vie” Younger kids asking “What is P♡M?” and a few people were interested in how we make it, wondering if we crush the whole pomegranates or just the arils.
After the walk began and the crowds disbursed, I was able to talk to Kate Linder who plays “Esther Valentine” on “The Young and The Restless” and is the ALS Association Spokes Person. She told me that she is a regular drinker but she waters it down 50:50 because of the calorie and carb content.

The Laker Girls on the other hand Love P♡M straight and making drinks with it. I was told that their favorite is a P♡M tini or a P♡M Tanq and Tonic when they “find it.” One of the Laker Girls said she drinks about half of a 16 oz bottle of Blueberry or Cherry P♡M after practice and games because she likes the way it makes her feel. It seems as though this is a common thread in a large portion of regular P♡M drinkers, myself included only I choose to drink it before or during a workout.
There was a very diverse crowd here as it was large groups and families from all over Los Angeles. Most seemed as though they were health conscious individuals that were aware of the benefits of antioxidants and fresh pomegranates as well as it’s juice. For that reason the really liked P♡M s logo, bottle and list of ingredients with a few individuals that were sad to see that our juice is from concentrate. Apparently they had been misinformed thinking that it wasn’t. I reassured them that it is strictly for quality and flavor control. A large portion of the people that have never tried it before said they liked it simply because it reminds them of one of two things; they have a pomegranate tree at home (they were the families asking how to make it) or they had one as a kid and you can actually see it in their expression while tasting. One woman, her eyes lit up like Rockefeller Center for Christmas and a huge smile appeared on her face “Wow... Where do you sell this? It tastes just like the pomegranates I had growing up in my moms backyard” she said. It turns out she was never really interested in that cold produce section with “pre cut fruit and packaged salads” as she called it. I also informed her that we have teas and fresh pomegranates as well. She was really excited which seemed infectious around our table as more and more people gathered. After our quick conversation she stated that she will be on the look out for P♡M the next time she goes to the market. All said and done, it was a great event. For an Awesome Cause. Even Clowns love P♡M. That would be a great commercial… Clown Cars, Red Noses, Balloons, and P♡M.