innocent drinks
Bringing a beloved UK smoothie brand into China through localized brand storytelling, launch planning, media engagement, and consumer-facing activation.
Agency - WE Communications Shanghai
Year - 2019-2020
Focus - Market entry, brand launch, PR strategy, localization, media & KOL engagement, launch event execution
Context
At WE Communications Shanghai, I worked on the China launch of innocent drinks, a UK-born smoothie brand known for its playful personality, natural ingredients, and approachable tone of voice. The project started before the brand officially entered the China market and required a full launch communications system: brand education, localized storytelling, media and KOL planning, event preparation, press materials, interviews, and launch execution.
Challenge
innocent had strong brand equity in its home market, but Chinese consumers and media were still unfamiliar with the brand. The challenge was to introduce innocent in a way that felt clear, credible, and locally relevant while preserving the brand’s original warmth, humor, and simplicity. We needed to explain not only what the product was, but why the brand felt different in a crowded beverage market.
Insight
For China launch, product information alone was not enough. The brand needed a story people could immediately understand: real fruit, natural goodness, light-hearted personality, and a more human way to talk about healthy drinks. The opportunity was to localize innocent’s tone without losing its charm.
Strategy
We built the launch around brand education and localization. The communications approach translated innocent’s global brand personality into a China-ready narrative: simple, fresh, playful, and trustworthy. From media materials to launch event flow, every touchpoint was designed to help media, KOLs, and consumers quickly understand who innocent was and why its arrival in China mattered.
Impact
The launch helped introduce innocent to the China market with a clear brand story and a polished communications rollout. Through early-stage planning, localized messaging, media/KOL engagement, and event execution, the project created a strong foundation for the brand’s China presence and helped make innocent feel accessible, fresh, and memorable to its first local audiences.
Preparation
A large part of the work happened before launch. We prepared the foundation for the brand’s China entry, including brand background materials, media and KOL lists, launch press releases, media invitations, interview planning, executive talking points, MC scripts, event rundown, partnership discussions, social content planning, and product storytelling. This preparation helped turn a new-to-market brand into a clear, organized launch story.