HICKORY, N.C. — The 2019 Gerber “spokesbaby” has been announced, and she’s a cutie.
Gerber said Kairi Yang from Hickory, North Carolina, beat out about 544,000 others who entered on Instagram to be named the face of the brand for the year. The 9th annual Photo Search contest was announced in October.
"As soon as we saw her photo, we fell in love with Kairi's expressive eyes and angelic face, looking toward the future and being excited for all that it holds," Gerber President and CEO Bill Partyka said in a statement. "We believe that every baby is a Gerber baby, and this year, are thrilled to recognize Kairi as the new face of Gerber."
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The 2018 face of the brand, Lucas Warren, was an honorary judge on the panel for this year. He made history as the first Gerber Baby with Down syndrome.
Kairi, who is named after a character from the “Kingdom Hearts” video game series, made history this year as the first first Gerber baby of Hmong descent.
Hmong is an ethnic group from China and Southeast Asia with their own language, which Kairi’s mother, Ying Vue, says she will learn.
“Being surrounded by all her family has been a very positive influence on Kairi’s life, especially when it comes to preserving our culture and tradition,” Vue, who is originally from Thailand,
. “Kairi will grow up knowing how to read and write in Hmong, so that she can speak with her grandparents.”
Winners of the contest are featured on Gerber’s social media, and their family gets $50,000.
"When we first found out Kairi won, we were speechless and couldn't believe it." Vue said in news release. "Kairi's personality is larger than life, and she always maintains a spunky attitude."
Today reported the 1-year-old enjoys nursery rhymes and playing with her dad, Peter Yang.
According to Gerber’s website, Kairi also loves chicken nuggets and Gerber Lil Crunchies, Arrowroot Cookies and Puffs.
For the 10th anniversary of the photo search, Gerber will launch the contest globally.
Learn more about Kairi here.
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