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You know your restaurant has gone viral when it closes a freeway exit in California. That’s what happened to San Pedro Fish Market after popular content creator Foodbeast made a video about their “Super Seafood Tray.”
With its irresistible mountain of seasoned shrimp, onions, peppers, tomatoes and potatoes, the family meal was destined to become popular. But no one at the San Pedro fish market knew how famous it would become until the Foodbeast post surfaced on social media.
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After the video went viral and was viewed millions of times, Michael Ungaro, CEO and co-owner of the San Pedro Fish Market, received a call from the Los Angeles Port Police on a rainy March day.
The port police had to close the exits from the highway because they could not handle the traffic coming to the fish market. The police were confused as to why so many people came by car on a day when there is usually not much traffic on the waterfront.
“The video went so viral that it attracted 30,000 customers from all over the country and abroad in 10 days,” says Ungaro Restaurant Influencer Moderator Shawn Walchef. “People called from London, South America, Kansas and Florida.”
The Super Seafood Tray has become one of the most-posted dishes on Instagram. “After telling our story and using these social media platforms, we realized why people come to us,” says Ungaro, who started working at his family’s fish market at age 7. “They come to us with their families; they come for the experience. And the more we spread that story, the stronger our brand became.”
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The series “Kings of Fi$h” on Prime Video
San Pedro Fish Market’s Foodbeast feature came after the company had already begun investing in its own content. Its award-winning web show Kings of Fi$h began as a way to capture the family’s vibrant entrepreneurial spirit and to spotlight the lively, fun-loving characters who built and continue to drive this thriving business. The San Pedro Fish Market serves 2.5 million people each year.
The company now expects to debut its Kings of Fi$h Series on Amazon Prime Video on August 13th.
Eight years after the publication of the first fish market data Kings of Fi$h Videos – and on the eve of its debut on Amazon Prime Video – the impact of the family’s narrative strategy is evident.
The San Pedro fish market has become a worldwide phenomenon because the family has chosen to continue telling their story with substance.
“Every one of us has heard a story about seeing a Fish Market shirt on a trip far away,” says Ungaro. “I’ve traveled to Europe, and after college, I went to Mexico to visit some of our employees – Fish Market shirts. It’s just crazy.”
This global recognition is a testament to San Pedro Fish Market’s successful marketing and storytelling efforts, which have earned it a recognized name around the world.
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