Brad Avery

Brad Avery

Senior Reporter

Brad is a Reporter for BevNET.com.

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Posts by Brad Avery

Regatta Rebrand Embraces Craft Mixer Platform

Connecticut-based premium craft mixers maker Regatta is looking to bring an aspirational lifestyle positioning to the category, as it makes the transition from an on-premise focused ginger beer company to one with a broader product portfolio and multi-channel strategy.

BevNET Magazine Feature: Powdered Beverages Embrace Hydration

The hydration-focused powdered sports drink mix category has been experiencing a renaissance as independent brands offer consumers clean label credentials with clinical testing to back efficacy claims, while also delivering fun, lifestyle brand identities to bring in new consumers and celebrity influencers.

Dr. Priestley’s “Small Batch Fizzy Water” Celebrates Soda Inventor

Named for Dr. Joseph Priestley, an 18th century renaissance man who is recognized as the first documented inventor of soda water in 1767, the New York-based beverage company, which launched last month on Amazon, markets a line of premium sparkling waters with cocktail-inspired flavor profiles.

Distribution Roundup: Soylent Goes Chainwide in Walmart

Meal replacement brand Soylent is now available in all 4,378 U.S. Walmart locations in five SKUs, including four-bottle multipacks; New Age Beverages partners with Hudson News Distributors; Bimble makes CBD play in Northeast region; ICONIC Protein goes nationwide with Whole Foods, adds 800 Target stores.

Cannabis Investor SOL Global Takes Stake in Jones Soda

SOL Global, an investment firm focused on the cannabis industry, purchased a 9.8% stake in Jones Soda last month, making it the company’s largest stockholder. SOL CEO Brady Cobb said the firm believes Seattle-based Jones is an undervalued company with strong growth potential.

Lance Collins, KDP Partner for Performance Energy Play Adrenaline Shoc

Lance Collins, the veteran beverage entrepreneur who founded NOS and CORE Hydration, is returning to the energy drink space with Adrenaline Shoc, a new “Fitness Enhanced Energy” brand that seeks to seize the momentum in a fast-growing segment of the energy space.

KDP Bottler Sues BodyArmor for Breach of Contract

The American Bottling Company, a subsidiary of Keurig Dr Pepper, has filed a lawsuit against BodyArmor and its founder and chairman Mike Repole, claiming wrongful termination of its contract after Coke took distribution rights and a minority stake in the brand last August.

Sol-ti Moves to Protect ‘SuperAde’ Trademark

Sol-ti founder and CEO Ryne O’Donnell said the company has sent between two and five cease and desist letters to other companies marketing SuperAdes within the past 18 months, and as many as 10 times within the past two years.

Bolthouse Farms Sold to Butterfly Equity for $510 Million

Los Angeles-based private equity firm Butterfly signed a definitive agreement today to acquire Bolthouse Farms from Campbell Soup Company for $510 million in cash -- roughly $1 billion less than what the soup conglomerate paid when it acquired the brand in 2012.

Fairlife to Open $200 Million Production Facility in Arizona

Fairlife is heading west as construction is set to begin this year on a new 300,000-square-foot production facility in Goodyear, Ariz. The brand anticipates the $200 million facility will be online by the second half of 2020.

Fresh Start: Fresh Market Plots Beverage Overhaul

Facing a sustained double digit decline in beverage sales, The Fresh Market’s director of grocery Dwight Richmond knew the retailer needed something more than the standard category reset to fix its issues. Last month Richmond put into motion his plan to turn around the massive drop in beverage sales.

Distribution Roundup: Big Geyser Revamps Energy Roster Post-Monster

Big Geyser and Monster Part Ways, Distributor to Revamp Energy Roster; Clean Cause Builds Distribution Network, Raises $3.75 Million; LEMI Superior Lemonade Launches with Low Calorie Category Play; Runa Joins KDP Network

CBD Startup Daytrip Taps Former Rockstar EVP Cannata

Daytrip is currently establishing a distribution network and plans to rollout next month through ecommerce and in independent retail accounts. The CBD-infused sparkling water line includes Cherry, Coconut Pineapple, Lemon Lime, and Tangerine flavors which contain 5 calories and 10 mg of CBD per 12 oz can.

Nielsen: C-Store Channel Sales Stagnant in March

Total convenience channel sales for major categories grew at just 0.4 percent in the four week period ending March 23, underperforming all other channels according to an analysis of Nielsen scanner data by Wells Fargo Securities.