Keisha Smith-Jeremie Revolutionizes Applesauce for Adults with Sanaía
Keisha Smith-Jeremie, the visionary behind Sanaía Applesauce, is shaking up the traditional applesauce market by catering to adults. This isn’t your childhood snack anymore; Sanaía is a reimagined treat infused with exotic flavors like guava, ginger, and tamarind, all made with organic green apples and baked apple wedges. The brand’s journey began when Keisha, a University of Virginia student from the Bahamas, missed the tropical flavors of home and decided to create her own applesauce.
Currently, the applesauce market is valued at nearly $900 million, with a staggering 99% focused on kids. Keisha believes that Sanaía can disrupt this market much like yogurt did, transforming it into a multibillion-dollar industry. Her strategy involves leveraging AI-driven marketing tools to better understand consumer preferences and automate production processes, ensuring efficiency and scalability.
In 2019, Sanaía made a significant debut in 800 Walmart stores across the U.S., offering unsweetened green apple and guava flavors. Although the deal with Mark Cuban from “Shark Tank” didn’t materialize, Keisha continued to innovate. She utilized the creator economy by engaging with her audience through social media, fostering a community around her brand. This approach allowed her to gather feedback and refine her products, which are now available on Amazon.
Sanaía’s success is also a testament to the power of the creator economy, where entrepreneurs can directly connect with their audience and build a loyal following. Keisha’s journey highlights the challenges faced by entrepreneurs of color, who often balance their ventures with other responsibilities. Her message resonates with many: pursuing your dreams doesn’t always mean quitting your day job.
Today, Sanaía is poised to become a leader in the adult snacking category, offering vegan, kosher, non-GMO, low-sugar, gluten-free, and allergen-free options. With each serving containing only 60-80 calories, Sanaía is the perfect choice for health-conscious adults seeking delicious and sustainable snacks. As Keisha puts it, “I created Sanaía because I believe that what we eat provides us with the fuel we need to live the life we want.”
Kevin "KevRoss" Ross is a music and radio industry expert. He is a 20 -plus year entrepreneur with the leading most successful industry trade publication and site Radio Facts (www.radiofacts.com). He has also published various books, magazines, performed marketing and promotions for major corporations and recording artists and he is on the advisory board of several industry organizations. This year Ross introduced his non profit organization LOMARI (Leaders of the Music and Recording Industry) to help teach young minority students how to market and manage their music and products.
