BevNET Live Summer 2023 — Agenda

June 12+13, 2024

Eastern Time

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2023

  1. 7:00 AM – 9:00 AM

    Registration & Breakfast, Presented by Matchako

    Breakfast, coffee and beverages are served from 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM ET and are included with registration. Registration and badge pick up opens for the day at 7:00 AM ET.
  2. 7:45 AM – 9:45 AM

    Beverage School Presentations + Networking

    The morning of BevNET Live day 1, industry newcomers can learn the basics of running a beverage business and jumpstart their networking at Beverage School. Experts will present on topics early-stage beverage brands need to know, including finance, sales, marketing, design, and operations.
  3. 7:45 AM – 8:05 AM

    Beverage School: Understanding Route to Market

    • Bill Sipper, Managing Partner (Cascadia Managing Brands)
  4. 8:05 AM – 8:25 AM

    Beverage School: Beverage Finance Best Practices

    • Jeremy Halpern, Partner; Co-Chair Food and Beverage Group (Nutter)
  5. 8:25 AM – 8:45 AM

    Beverage School: Design and Branding Principles for Beverage Brands

    • Kelly Criswell, Principal (Mudge)
  6. 8:45 AM – 9:05 AM

    Beverage School: Using Data and Building Sell Stories

    • Benji Fitts, Director, Client Insights (SPINS)
  7. 9:05 AM – 9:25 AM

    Beverage School: Lessons from a Career in Beverage

    • Neil Kimberley, President (Bossa Nova Beverages)
  8. 9:25 AM – 9:45 AM

    Beverage School Expert Tables

  9. 10:00 AM – 10:05 AM

    Welcome Remarks

  10. 10:05 AM – 10:35 AM

    Innovation at Any Size

    Mike Kirban discusses the ways Vita Coco has managed to stay innovative as it has grown, while also addressing the skills and practices he and his leadership team have developed as they have gone from startup to global brand.
    • Mike Kirban, Chairman/Co-Founder (The Vita Coco Company)
  11. 10:35 AM – 11:00 AM

    How Sprouts Seeks Out Innovation

    The team at Sprouts is intent on finding new beverage brands to surprise and delight consumers. They discuss the store’s goals and the best ways to pitch and grow with this selective and influential national chain.
    • Scott Romano, VP & Forager (Sprouts)
    • Brian Albert, Sr. Category Manager, Grocery (Sprouts)
    • Kim Coffin, SVP & Chief Forager (Sprouts Farms Market)
  12. 11:00 AM – 11:30 AM

    The Finance Forecast for Beverage Brands

    What’s going on behind the dreadful headlines on investment and inflation? What does the immediate financial future look like for beverage entrepreneurs in terms of capital availability, deal terms, lending, and the strategic marketplace? What kinds of alternative financing and partnership arrangements are out there? Our panelists provide a planning strategy for the short and medium term.
    • Elliot Begoun, Founder (TIG Brands)
    • Michael Burgmaier, Managing Director (Whipstitch Capital)
    • Erin Wall, Partner/CRO (Lunr)
  13. 11:30 AM – 12:00 PM

    Milo's on the Move

    Tricia Wallwork introduces the ideas and tactics fueling the growth of Milo’s, the iced tea brand that has grown into a power player in the beverage business. From leadership to employee development to supply chain investment, Wallwork will discuss the way she and her team are transforming Milo’s from 50-year local brand to one of the fastest growing beverage companies in the country.
    • Tricia Wallwork, Chair & CEO (Milo's Tea Company)
  14. 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM

    Lunch, Presented by Saint James Iced Tea, Sampling & Taste Radio Studio

  15. 1:30 PM – 1:55 PM

    Change Comes for Super Coffee

    The DeCicco brothers, founders of Kitu Super Coffee talk about the hard decisions that led them to shift the focus at Super Coffee from growth at all costs to cash efficiency, and the ways that those decisions have been implemented at the company.
    • Jordan DeCicco, COO (Super Coffee)
    • Jake DeCicco, CRO (Super Coffee)
    • Jimmy DeCicco, Executive Chairman & Chief Brand Officer (Super Coffee)
  16. 1:55 PM – 2:20 PM

    Building Your DTC Feedback Loop

    The online sales visionary shares his latest update on the role of D2C as part of an omnichannel sales strategy, including the methodology and tools for converting D2C sales into a feedback engine for brand building and product development.
    • Nik Sharma, CEO (Sharma Brands)
  17. 2:20 PM – 2:45 PM

    Anticipating Change During Growth

    The veteran executive maps out the challenges and changes that take place during growth stages of beverage businesses, from key hires to systems integrations, and the ways to sustain momentum as the business transitions.
    • Kyle Thomas, Chief Revenue Officer (Nutrabolt)
  18. 2:45 PM – 4:15 PM

    New Beverage Showdown Semifinals

    Watch our newest set of founders present their brands and try to make the cut for the finals.
  19. 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM

    BevNET Live Official Happy Hour, Presented by ForceBrands

    Join the official BevNET Live cocktail party, also held on-site at the Metropolitan Pavilion, for some time chatting with each other about the day’s lessons over more snacks and drinks, before adjourning for the day.

Please note that event agendas are subject to change.