Case Study: Pinot Palooza 2025

Written By Hannah Lesser

Driving record-breaking ticket sales for Australia’s leading wine and cheese festival

“Working with Launcher Lab on our events has been fantastic. They supported us in scaling attendance, whilst significantly improving ad efficiency. Attentive, flexible, and easy to work with - their collaborative approach and responsiveness made the process smooth from start to finish.” — Helena | MARKETING MANAGER

Client Overview

Pinot Palooza is a national wine and cheese festival that tours major cities across Australia. It features an exceptional lineup of wine producers and artisan cheeses curated by the team behind MOULD: A Cheese Festival.

In 2024, Pinot Palooza and MOULD collaborated for the first time in Perth and Brisbane. Following that success, the 2025 tour expanded the partnership across Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth, offering attendees a unified and elevated food and wine experience.

The Objective

Launcher Lab was engaged to lead Pinot Palooza X MOULD’s Paid Media strategy. The goal was to drive ticket sales and help sell out all three city events through a performance-driven campaign across Meta platforms.

Our Approach

We developed and executed tailored Meta (Facebook and Instagram) campaigns for each city. Our strategy adapted to each local market and was continuously optimised based on audience behaviour and performance trends.

  • A bespoke campaign structure supported each city

  • Campaigns were delivered in phases, including launch, momentum building, and final push

  • Messaging was updated dynamically to reflect session availability and encourage urgency

Creative Strategy and Key Learnings

Creative variety played a key role in campaign performance. Across all locations, we tested and implemented:

  • Producer lineup highlights to build early excitement

  • Walkthrough and Producer Interview videos to showcase the event experience

  • Urgency messaging, such as “Selling Fast” and “Limited Tickets,” to drive conversions

One of the most valuable insights was the effectiveness of reusing high-performing content from earlier events. For example, the walkthrough video from Brisbane was incorporated into the Melbourne campaign. This not only created a sense of anticipation but also helped increase engagement and conversion rates.

Results and Performance Wins

Brisbane

  • 3,854 tickets sold in 2025 - SOLD OUT EVENT

  • 27 percent increase in ticket sales compared to 2024 (3,040 tickets)

  • Cost per acquisition (CPA) reduced by 25 percent from $16.48 in 2024 to $12.36 in 2025

  • Outperformed MOULD 2024, which sold 2,761 tickets at a CPA of $49.79, delivering 40% more sales at 75% lower cost

Melbourne

  • 6,659 tickets sold in 2025 - SOLD OUT EVENT

  • 77% increase in ticket sales compared to 2024 (3,762 tickets)

  • Cost per acquisition (CPA) decreased by $3.17 (from $18.32 to $15.15), reflecting a 17% boost in cost efficiency.

Perth 

  • 4,591 tickets sold in 2025 - SOLD OUT EVENT (3491)

  • Meta purchases increased 82% in 2025, climbing from 621 in 2024 to 1,133 in 2025

Impact

By applying a performance-led strategy, leveraging real-time creative testing and capitalising on proven content, Launcher Lab helped Pinot Palooza exceed its sales goals and significantly reduce acquisition costs. The campaign sold out all major cities and set a new benchmark for the brand’s future event marketing.

Want results like this?

At Launcher Lab, our performance marketing speaks for itself. We’ll help you scale fast and achieve results that truly move the needle. What makes us different? Our model combines a simple retainer with success fees directly tied to performance. No lock-in contracts, just accountability and great results. Ready to scale? Let’s talk!

Hannah Lesser
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