Parch was crowned the champion of BevNET’s New Beverage Showdown 25 today, joining a cohort of well-known beverage brands such as Rise Brewing Co. and Health-Ade who have also claimed victory in the bi-annual pitch competition.
Industry experts ranging from long-time entrepreneurs to grocery buyers and beverage investors shared their optimism about the road ahead for emerging brands, while also emphasizing the importance of a strong focus on business fundamentals and managing growth within the bandwidth of your balance sheet today.
Six startup beverage brands emerged from a field of 12 contestants to secure a spot in tomorrow’s final round of New Beverage Showdown 25 at BevNET Live Summer 2023, presented by Coca-Cola North America New Revenue Streams.
This week features a conversation with GN Chan, the founder of Double Chicken Please, a New York City bar widely recognized as one of the best in the world. As part of our interview, Chan explained his view of the bar as “a design and performance studio,” an innovative menu in which you “drink your food and eat your drink” and the regionality of non-alcoholic cocktail and spirit trends.
There’s big money flowing into emerging concepts… and we have the receipts. Within this episode, the hosts discussed canned wine, plant-based analogs of popular snacks and THC-centric brands. We also discussed influential trends and innovative products in the evolving world of mixology in interviews with past World Class US Bartenders of the Year Jessi Pollak and Adam Fournier along with James Beard-honored mixologist and author Kim Haasarud.
In this week’s new products roundup, Coca-Cola teams up with Riot Games to launch the ‘Ultimate’ gamer-focused flavor, Liquid I.V. debuts its first sugar-free product and Boxed Water, 100 Coconuts and Karma Hydration launch fruit-forward offerings sure to keep consumers hydrated in the summer heat.
Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes, who led the world’s biggest spirits company for a decade, died at the age of 63 after a brief illness, the company announced on Wednesday. Debra Crew has been named interim CEO, effective immediately.
MatchaKo is a four SKU line of RTD matcha beverages that were designed to create a “healthy and affordable way to consume matcha while also providing a sense of luxury with each sip.” The products are packaged in 7.5 ounce cans and are USDA Organic certified.
Farrah and Yassin Sibai, the co-founders of Mediterranean-inspired frozen food brand Afia, explained why they have long relied on self-manufacturing, the importance of emphasizing both brand and product awareness, the effectiveness of Instacart ads and instant redeemable coupons and how “the validity of the vision” propelled Afia’s Series A funding round.
Vita Coco is shaking up summer in the Hamptons by offering beachgoers craft coconut water cocktails at several favorite hot spots including The Surf Lodge, Gurney’s Montauk Resort & Seawater Spa, Southampton Social Club and TT’s Montauk.
What parallels exist between music, food and beverage and how can they inform entrepreneurs about innovation strategies? The hosts look to legendary music producer Rick Rubin for answers. We also discuss trends from behind the bar with the 2023 USBG World Class bartender of the year Renato Tonelli and Julie Reiner, the owner of world renowned NYC cocktail restaurants The Clover Club and Leyenda.
In this week’s new products roundup, Heywell collaborates with convenience store chain Foxtrot to create a new Cherry Limeade flavor, GNC drops its first hydration and performance product and Swoon and Splenda get into the summer spirit with new iced tea launches.
Community Call is a recurring series of discussions addressing timely topics within the food and beverage industry. This month, we welcome a range of guests covering topics such as demand planning, event marketing, and finding the right valuation of your business for fundraising.
Allison and Stephen Ellsworth, the co-founders of Poppi, spoke about the reasons behind better-for-you soda brand’s explosive growth and how the company is maintaining its torrid pace. They also discussed their transition into new roles, Poppi’s remarkable trial conversion and repeat purchase rates, Amazon as a key part of the company’s marketing strategy and why video is king on social media.
