On this week's Office Hours, Jordan Gaspar, managing partner at AF Ventures and Ben Mand, CEO of Harmless Harvest field questions from food and beverage industry entrepreneurs about investor and brand relationships and how they can evolve in a crisis climate.
Brendan Brazier, co-founder of pioneering plant-based protein brand Vega and “hard” cold-pressed juice brand Pulp Culture, spoke about how his passion for plant-based nutrition culminated in Vega, why the company embraced the saying “ignorance is our only competition,” how he assessed the opportunity for a better-for-you alcoholic beverages and his perspective on the evolution of plant-based foods.
In the first quarter of 2020, thanks to Covid-19, the investment landscape for spirits—and literally every other category—quickly devolved into something unexpected. So what does this mean for investors and entrepreneurs looking for venture capital funding?
GT Dave, founder & CEO of GT’s Kombucha, spoke about the brand’s recent packaging refresh and what he viewed as significant problems in how consumers perceived each of the company’s product lines, how his perspective as a category creator impacted the moves, why he’s embraced a more public persona than in the past and reacted to the provocative “Forbes” profile of him.
As the COVID-19 pandemic has forced a shutdown of all non-essential businesses, leading to both mass layoffs and a widespread shift to work-from-home for white collar workers, the growing space for cold brew coffee on draft has been effectively halted. The impact has forced coffee brands and distributors that had relied heavily on the office channel to make rapid changes.
Cindy Glick is the co-founder of Oregon Hop Springs, the makers of non-alcoholic and calorie-free carbonated water infused with select hops from the Pacific Northwest.
Office Hours, BevNET and NOSH’s weekly live call-in show, returns Tuesday, May 26 at 3 p.m. ET. Jordan Gaspar, managing partner at AF Ventures and Ben Mand, CEO of Harmless Harvest will field questions from food and beverage industry entrepreneurs about investor and brand relationships and how they can evolve in a crisis climate.
In this gallery, we highlight some of the notable new gin, rum and whiskey releases, including a Caribbean-inspired creation from a scotch label, Sagamore Spirit’s second collaboration with brewer Sierra Nevada, plus a pair of releases which will direct proceeds to charitable organizations.
The twelfth round of Elevator Talk Livestream features leaders from Goldthread, Pink and Blue, Twisted Alchemy, Capuli Drinks and more. This week's special co-host is Sebastian Dreher of Doehler Ventures, who will share his thoughts, questions and feedback with the participants.
Though preventative medicine is routinely of consumer interest, the onset of the coronavirus has made immune support a hot topic, particularly as no treatment, cure or vaccine currently exists. Until they are found, supporting a healthy immune system is seen-- and shopped -- widely as one of the ways individuals can be proactive in the fight against the virus.
Where trends such as ultra-filtered milk, grassfed and functional protein drinks have already given dairy a needed boost, national co-op Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) is helping new brands to move ahead with its 2020 DFA Accelerator, which announced its class of nine companies last week.
With the release of three new flavors this month — Black Cherry, Coconut Lime and Blood Orange — Recess is aiming to pivot the line’s flavor range towards mainstream tastes, and also to build upon the unique “personalities." But the company is also looking beyond beverage for ways to both grow revenue and create a deeper connection with its core audience — artists, designers and creatives — as exemplified by the launch of its new clothing line, Recess Realitywear.
This week's featured guests, investors Wayne Wu (VMG) and Robert Brown (Encore Consumer Capital), offer financing advice and discuss the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on investment in food and beverage companies, from sourcing and closing deals to changing terms.
Miguel Garza, co-founder & CEO of Mexican-American food brand Siete Family Foods, spoke about the principles upon which the company was founded, the roles of family and love play in the company’s operations, the hallmarks of its product development and innovation strategies and why revenue isn’t the defining metric for Siete to become an iconic brand.
