Featured image for Halo + Cleaver Launches New Whimsical Branding By Moxie Sozo

Halo + Cleaver Launches New Whimsical Branding By Moxie Sozo

by Chloe Gordon on 05/17/2021 | 3 Minute Read

Founded in 2019, Halo + Cleaver is a better-for-you sauce and condiment brand whose mission is to encourage current and future generations to live abundant, strong, and accomplished lives. Moxie Sozo, the Boulder, Colorado-based independent branding agency, created the new branding and packaging to emulate the brand's whimsical and friendly side. These sauce bottles will unquestionably stand out on the shelf amongst a sea of competitors as their packaging features a handwritten-inspired font, funky illustrations, and bright colors. Nothing quite says "let's barbeque" more than a sauce bottle full of spunky personality.


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Halo + Cleaver, the St. Louis-based brand known for its better-for-you sauces, today announced the launch of three reimagined low sugar sauces. The revamped flavors will be available at Schnucks, as well as new retailers Fresh Thyme and Straub’s. The company also updated its packaging to be more vibrant and approachable.

The three sauces hitting shelves in June are the company’s flagship Perfect Ketchup, Backyard Red BBQ Sauce, and Gold Mustard BBQ sauce, all of which have zero grams of added sugar. Each sauce was reworked to pack even more flavor while also earning Whole30, non-GMO, and Keto Diet certifications.

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“We set out to make the best-tasting low sugar sauces on the market, and we’re confident our new recipes will quickly become kitchen favorites,” said Matt Richard, Halo + Cleaver Founder and Chief Product Officer. “Families are cooking at home more than ever, and they’re also more informed and empowered when it comes to putting healthy, great-tasting food on the table. Halo + Cleaver sauces are simply delicious without the added sugar and artificial sweeteners that are so common in name brand sauces.”  

Richard founded the company in 2019 before recently joining forces with business school classmate, Rob Garwitz, who serves as CEO and Co-Owner. Already available in some of St. Louis’s largest grocery stores – including Schnucks and Dierbergs – the new recipes and expanded distribution are a key milestone in the company’s ambition to expand the brand beyond the region.

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Halo + Cleaver’s innovation centers around the use of naturally sweet ingredients such as apples, bananas, and pineapples in place of the more commonly used table sugar and high fructose corn syrup. A lifelong BBQ enthusiast, Richard developed the low sugar recipes after undergoing a personal health crisis in his early 20s.

“It came back to food and sugar. I realized that a few servings of my favorite BBQ sauces contained more sugar than a can of soda. I didn’t want to give up sauce, so I set out to find a no-compromise way to keep the trademark sweetness of BBQ sauce and ketchup,” said Richard.

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The brand story and packaging were done by Moxie Sozo, an independent branding agency based in Boulder, Colorado. The new branding is intended to be more playful and approachable – a reflection of the brand’s overall approach to good health as more than a diet and exercise equation. 

“At Halo + Cleaver, good health is about finding balance, having fun, and connecting with friends and family,” added Garwitz. “Our new brand pays tribute to life never being as tidy and perfect as most brands make it seem.” 

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