February 2019

Tabetha Hawkins (Administrator) on 25 Feb 2019 5:11 PM

QUESTION: What is the mission of your organization?

ANSWER: Deerfield-based Curion Insights, www.curioninsights.com, is a state-of-the-art provider of consumer insights and sensory testing for leading and emerging brands in the food and beverage, personal care, fragrance and home care industries. Brand owners leverage Curion data to uncover: key attributes for optimization, market and demographic opportunities, flavor and texture profiles, competitive landscape and more. The company’s mission is to provide clients with high-quality consumer insights in order to mitigate risk and ensure success in the marketplace.

QUESTION: What is your preferred method of marketing to your audience?

ANSWER: Our panelists serve as our “supply” of consumer insights. We attract consumer panelists via social media and shopper marketplaces. Our CPG clients are referred to Curion through word-of-mouth referrals.

QUESTION: Is there a specific focus, topic area or department that you would like to further develop through CFBN?

ANSWER: Sensory insights have a profound influence on product acceptance, and this is where we excel. Curion services include: Qualitative Descriptive Analysis (QDA®), Product Optimization (PROP™), Discrimination Testing, Consumer Acceptance Testing and Benchmarking to name a few. Invite us to speak! We look forward to sharing our knowledge with CFBN members.

QUESTION: What benefits or advantages are you hoping to gain through your membership?

ANSWER: We want to drive brand awareness. Curion was formed with the merger of Q Research Solutions and Tragon Corp. We are backed by Monroe Capital and, in addition to our headquarters in Deerfield, have offices in Dallas, Atlanta, San Francisco and in the New York metropolitan area. It is our hope to share our knowledge with other CFBN members, and educate them on the latest methods and processes we use to help CPG brands achieve market success.

QUESTION: What was the main motivation for joining the CFBN Network?

ANSWER: Networking with brand owners and industry thought leaders is a win-win opportunity. We look forward to meeting and sharing expertise with CFBN member companies. Curion can help them in their efforts to launch product concepts successfully. As a Chicagoland-based company, we have a vested interest in helping the business community thrive. Our mission aligns well with yours, “To leverage the power of the food and beverage industry in Chicagoland to grow the industry and the local economy.”

QUESTION: What additional information would you like to share about your organization?

ANSWER: Curion recently launched eFive™, a sensory and product insights platform designed specifically for emerging brands. Legacy brands have long enjoyed the competitive advantage of sensory research, coupled with precise data analytics. eFive™ will give emerging brands quick, accurate and affordable consumer insights from industry-leading sensory experts. This solution democratizes access to the knowledge new brands need most to succeed with a suite of offerings at an affordable price.

QUESTION: What areas do you feel your organization is well versed in?

ANSWER:

Curion is well versed in a range of disciplines including:

· Quantitative consumer preferences
· Qualitative consumer testing
· Sensory & Discrimination testing
· Fragrance testing
· Product innovation
· Mitigating against product failure

Learn more about our Cornerstone member Curion here

Article originally posted by Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network

Tabetha Hawkins (Administrator) on 19 Feb 2019 3:55 PM

February, 2019 (Chicago). Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network (CFBN) continues to grow fast, bringing together the region’s premier food and beverage companies for networking, education, and collaboration. Launching in 2017, with the mission of driving regional economic growth, CFBN now boasts more than 70 corporate members and over 150 individual members.

Today, CFBN announces its newest Cornerstone member, Deerfield based Curion, www.curioninsights.com, a leader in sensory and consumer product research to top companies across the United States. Curion helps companies mitigate risk of marketplace failure by ensuring that only products of quality and character will be introduced to the market, providing repeatable delight to consumers. They accomplish this with their world-class people, sensory processes, facilities and data insight. In 2018 alone, the company tested 97,000 consumers for 25 leading brands. Their insights provide a wealth of data such as: product readiness for launch, consumer purchase decision process, key attributes for optimization, market and demographic opportunity, flavor and texture profiles, competitive landscape and more. Curion was formed with the merger of Q Research Solutions and Tragon Corporation.

“We are excited to join the Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network in growing and developing our regional food and beverage connections,” says Sean Bisceglia, CEO of Curion. “We’re impressed by what CFBN’s accomplished in just two short years. We look forward to building upon their solid foundation.”

The Chicago area’s food and beverage industry encompass some 4,500 companies with 130,000 employees, equalling $32B in annual sales. Food & beverage is a key factor in the area’s economy. Chicagoland is the second-largest food & beverage industry ecosystem of its kind in the U.S.

In 2019, CFBN is finalizing the establishment of a training institute and certification program for food & beverage manufacturing employees. In partnership with Instituto del Progreso Latino and support from the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, and an anonymous donor, CFBN is developing a comprehensive curriculum that will prepare more people for industry careers.

“The food & beverage industry is uniquely able to provide jobs at all levels, which is critical for a vital local economy,” says Alan Reed, Executive Director for CFBN. “Our nonprofit mission is to work in a different way that will help support industry workers as well as the entire regional economy. We’re excited to now have Curion help us achieve this goal.”

Some additional CFBN members include: Kraft Heinz, Tyson Foods, Simple Mills and Tiesta Tea.

To become a Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network member visit chicagolandfood.org. Memberships are available to all industry enterprises — from early-stage food & beverage entrepreneurs to large, established companies. CFBN member benefits include access to exclusive industry events, affiliate discounts, career center, concierge services, and innovation support.

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For more information, please contact Andrea Carbine at andrea@chicagolandfood.org.

Article originally posted by Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network

CHICAGO IL

Kevin Coleman recently joined Chicago-based Curion, https://www.curioninsights.com, as General Manager, Director of Sales. He will head up the new eFive™ business. Parent Company, Curion, is a leading provider of consumer research and sensory testing for both legacy and challenger brands in the food & beverage, personal care, fragrance and home care categories. Coleman has a track record from companies such as ShopperTrak, Digsite and Brandmuscle where he grew accounts, achieved year-over-year growth and collaborated with marketing teams to drive brand awareness.

“Throughout Kevin’s career, he has met and surpassed sales quotas to the tune of millions in new business. The bulk of his career has been spent in disciplines around consumer research. So he brings valuable knowledge and experience — he knows how to win,” said Curion CEO Sean Bisceglia.

The newly launched eFive™ division offers a suite of research services designed to speed the path to market for challenger brands. Clients will get robust research findings quickly — from initial client inquiry and consumer recruitment to questionnaire development, fielding and analysis. Qualified participants are recruited from eFive’s vast database. They complete product evaluations in one of the company’s facilities or in their homes, or participate in moderated focus groups.

“I am excited to set the bar high with eFive™,” says Coleman. “Many of our clients are emerging brands and face tough challenges bringing fresh new concepts to market. eFive™ will give them the kind of consumer insights legacy brands employ. Our experienced researchers deliver clear findings from target consumers with speed and accuracy, and at an affordable cost.”

Coleman started his career in sales as a recruiter for DeVry University. He then served as Senior Sales Team Lead at Marketwired, where he topped a sales quota greater than100 percent for three years running. Prior to joining Curion, Kevin Coleman set performance and sales records for Digsite, a social-media style consumer insights company. His career includes a stellar background in sales while serving as a brand ambassador.

Adds Bisceglia, “With eFive, we are providing a sophisticated platform for sensory testing that emerging brands can leverage to take innovation to market with speed — and backed by consumer insight.”

About Curion
Curion is a full-service product and sensory insights firm. Curion mitigates risk of marketplace failure by ensuring that only products of quality and character will be introduced to the market, providing repeatable delight to your consumers. This is accomplished with world-class people, sensory processes, facilities, and data insights. These insights provide a wealth of information such as: product readiness for launch, consumer purchase decision process, market and demographic opportunity, flavor and texture profiles, competitive landscape and more. Curion was formed with the merger of Q Research Solutions and Tragon Corp.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Lisa Spathis, Lisa Spathis Public Relations, Inc.,
lisaspathis@gmail.com
847. 831.1367

Curion, leader in sensory evaluation and consumer product testing, launches eFive™

A long-awaited platform for emerging brands

CHICAGO IL

Curion, announced today the launch of eFive™, a sensory and product insights platform designed specifically for emerging brands with testing facilities in Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas and New York City metropolitan areas. “Legacy brands have long enjoyed the competitive advantage of sensory research, coupled with precise data analytics. eFive™ will give emerging brands quick, accurate, and affordable consumer insights from industry-leading sensory experts. This solution democratizes access to the knowledge challengers need most to succeed with a suite of offerings at an affordable price,” says Curion CEO Sean Bisceglia.

Sensory science is a research method that gathers and analyzes consumers’ responses to products that invoke the five human senses: taste, touch, sight, smell and sound. Through its offerings, eFive uses sensory science to reduce the risk of failure. For brand owners like Gregg Latterman, co-founder of Chicago based Positive Pretzels, eFive™ delivered the consumer insights needed to take his new product to market.

According to Latterman, “When Curion showed me what eFive™ could do, I was impressed. I was able to get consumer insights quickly and profile my target audience. We were able to develop brand messaging and create viable market positioning, so critical in today’s agile retail environment. Today, Positive Pretzels can be found at Whole Foods.”

Adds Bisceglia, “Speed to market and agility are the competitive advantages legacy brands have long understood, but consumer testing can be costly. With eFive™, we can give emerging and craft brands research and sensory testing that delivers valuable insights with speed and accuracy.”

For more information or to receive a free estimate on your next sensory test please visit us at www.efiveinsights.com

About Curion

Curion is a full-service product and sensory insights firm. Curion mitigates risk of marketplace failure by ensuring that only products of quality and character will be introduced to the market, providing repeatable delight to consumers. This is accomplished with world-class people, sensory processes, facilities, and data insights. These insights provide a wealth of information such as: product readiness for launch, consumer purchase decision process, market and demographic opportunity, flavor and texture profiles, competitive landscape and more. Curion was formed with the merger of Q Research Solutions and Tragon Corp.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Lisa Spathis, Lisa Spathis Public Relations, Inc.,
lisaspathis@gmail.com
847. 831.1367