BevNET Live Summer 2025 - AGENDA

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2025
7:00 AM - 10:00 AM	Registration Opens; Breakfast + Networking --
8:00 AM - 9:30 AM	Beverage School Presentations -- Location: Floor 2 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. Following the presentations, attendees will have the opportunity to sit down with the experts and ask them their toughest questions.
8:00 AM - 8:15 AM	Beverage School: The Beverage Entrepreneur’s Playbook -- Drawing from his experience from the rapid growth of Remedy Organics — Henry Kasindorf will cover key stepping stones that have led to the brand’s dramatic success . A serial entrepreneur and active member of the entrepreneurial community, Henry brings a real-world perspective grounded in both resilience and hard-earned experience. with Henry Kasindorf, CEO, Remedy Organics
8:15 AM - 8:30 AM	Beverage School: How The Beverage Industry Really Works -- Bill Sipper of Cascadia Managing Brands presents a blunt roadmap for beverage startups, explaining why 93% fail. Success requires mastering the distribution system, retail authorization, pricing margins, and avoiding common pitfalls. Distributors demand volume and exclusivity but won’t build your brand. Retail chains have long review cycles and won’t authorize new products quickly. Profit margins shrink fast with retailer and distributor cuts. Launching smartly, focusing on velocity, and budgeting for promotions are key. Bottom line: this is a logistics game disguised as branding—know the system or get knocked off the shelf. with Bill Sipper, Managing Partner, Cascadia Managing Brands
8:30 AM - 8:45 AM	Beverage School: FDA Compliance for Beverage Brands -- The beverage and specialty drink industry is rapidly evolving, driven by consumer demand for creative, non-alcoholic, and health-promoting options. Understanding regulatory obligations and how to market competitively while avoiding unwanted scrutiny from regulators and the class action bar can be challenging. In this session, Claudia Lewis will break down the latest compliance requirements impacting labeling, ingredients, and marketing claims. Whether you're launching a new product or managing an established brand, this session will provide practical guidance to help you stay compliant and avoid costly mistakes while maintaining your competitive edge in a highly regulated industry. with Claudia A. Lewis, Partner, Venable
8:45 AM - 9:00 AM	Beverage School: Brand Design That Wins On Shelf -- Developing a memorable brand and getting a great product package on shelf quickly, efficiently, and without breaking the bank is one of the greatest challenges facing beverage brands. During this presentation Voicebox will share valuable brand design do's and don'ts – insights developed over two decades designing brands and packaging systems for clients ranging from some of America's most recognizable beverage brands to innovative category disruptors. Attendees will walk away with a proven brand design process to achieve speed-to-market with a brand that captures attention, inspires interest and trial, and drives repeat purchase. with Jacques Rossouw, Creative Director and Managing Partner, Voicebox
9:00 AM - 9:15 AM	Beverage School: Understanding Equity & Convertible Notes -- Equity is the most important currency of high growth startup companies, and understanding how equity can be used to fund a company’s growth is, or should be, a prerequisite for all founders. Nutter’s Food and Beverage Co-Chair Will Bernat will lead a discussion that will introduce the basics of common stock, preferred stock, stock options, and convertible notes, and the most common ways they are used in a company’s growth, including structuring founder equity, building the team, expectations of investors, and dilution. with Will Bernat, Partner, Nutter
9:15 AM - 9:45 AM	Beverage School Roundtable Networking --
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM	One-to-One Retail Meetings -- Location: Floor 2 Prior registration is required and meeting times are sent individually. Please check in at the One-to-One Help Desk before heading to your meeting room. Meetings will be 10 minutes each and the complete schedule is posted at the Help Desk. with Eddie Attubato, Beverage Category Manager, Stop & Shop; Edward Detwiler, Senior Category Manager, Casey's; Tracy Lester, Business Development Manager, HEB; Michael Sanchez, Business Development Manager, H-E-B; David Lafferty, Executive Leader (Beverages & Snacks), Whole Foods Market; Charlie New, Global Category Manager, Refrigerated Beverage, Whole Foods Market; Joanne Neugebauer , Senior Beverage Category Merchant , Whole Foods Market; Candace Price Ternus, Principal Category Merchant - Beverage, Whole Foods Market; Jon Halper, Owner/CEO, Top Ten Liquors; Rachel Krupa, Founder, The Goods Mart; Maxine Lopez, Merchandising Manager, The Goods Mart; Lia O'Rourke, Director of Operations, The Goods Mart
10:00 AM	-- Main Session Starts -- -- Location: Floor 1
10:00 AM - 10:15 AM	Welcome Remarks -- with Jeff Klineman, Editor in Chief, BevNET; John Craven, CEO & Founder, BevNET.com
10:15 AM - 10:40 AM	Business, Brands, Beverages, Belsito! -- Our first conversation of the day brings advice and perspective from one of the country's accomplished beverage company CEOs. with Jack Belsito, CEO, VOSS Americas
10:30 AM - 11:30 AM	Sponsored Workshop: Accessing Gen Z in Beverage with NIL -- Location: Floor 2 For the past four years, 98Strong has helped top food and beverage brands including OLIPOP, Orgain, and Guayaki (now Yerba Madre) drive full funnel growth through NIL, from awareness to conversion. In this workshop, we’ll explore how NCAA student athletes are reshaping Gen Z influence and how brands can connect with this powerful community in an authentic way. with Matthew Murray, co-Founder, 98Strong; Andrew Mavis, CEO & co-Founder, 98Strong; Julia Walsh, Campaign Manager, 98Strong
10:40 AM - 11:05 AM	Investment Trends: Inside Funding Collectives -- Multi-member investment syndicates and shared platforms are becoming powerful value-added investors for beverage brands; our panelists discuss the best ways to partner with them. with Alyssa Arnold, Partner, The Angel Group; Kyle Fitzpatrick, Founder, Paperboy Ventures; Josh Wand, Managing Partner, The Family Fund
11:05 AM - 11:35 AM	Leadership Lesson: Learning from the Yerba Madre Name Change -- We look at the reasons the yerba mate category leader put its brand through seismic change – and how brand leaders can think about implementing major changes at their own companies. with Ben Mand, CEO, Yerba Madre
11:35 AM - 12:00 PM	Live Nation as Brand Partner -- Talk about high-visibility retail: With more than 50,000 concerts and festivals last year, Live Nation events brought in more than 150 million thirsty customers, and concert attendance keeps rising. Now, they’re investing in rising CPG brands. with Anthony Kiedis, Co-Founder, JOLENE Coffee; Shane Powers, Co-Founder, JOLENE Coffee; Russell Wallach, Global President, Media and Sponsorship, Live Nation; Jackie Atlas, Managing Director, JOLENE Coffee
12:00 PM - 1:30 PM	Lunch, Sampling & Taste Radio Studio -- Location: Floor 1
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM	Sponsored Workshop: Building a Scalable Supply Chain for THC Beverages: High Tea with Master Mixologists and Industry Experts -- Location: Floor 2 Join Templar Food Products and a panel of leading cannabis beverage experts for a live “High Tea” experience that goes beyond the basics. This interactive workshop explores the full product lifecycle from formulation and emulsion to manufacturing and mixology. Learn how to build a scalable, compliant supply chain and walk away with practical insights to launch or grow your cannabis beverage brand. Led by master mixologist Warren Bobrow (Klaus), with technical leaders from Vertosa, Abstrax, and Monarch, this session includes a live beverage demo, real-time Q&A, and sample tastings. The first 100 RSVPs receive tickets to the 7:00 PM Tall Ship Sunset Cruise: New York Tea Party, presented by @manhattanbysail. Sponsored by Templar Food Products with Warren Bobrow, Chief Flavorist & Co-Founder, Klaus The Gnome, Inc; Derek Gould, Partner/CMO, Monarch Beverage; Maggie Diasparra, Senior Application and Sales Manager, Abstrax Tech; Troy Brosnan, Partner/CEO, Monarch Beverage; Ryan Pinsky, VP of Sales, Vertosa
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM	Share of Sip -- The data behind key developments affecting pricing, innovation, assortment and consumer appetites for beverage brands. with Sally Lyons Wyatt, Global EVP & Chief Advisor, Circana
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM	Sponsored Workshop: Talk to Your Data, and It Talks Back - How AI is Transforming the Way CPG Brands Compete, Operate, and Win -- Location: Floor 2 CPG brands know they need AI—but most don’t know where to start. In this workshop, Kevin Senn, CEO of AisleAI, unpacks the real-world challenges and breakthroughs of implementing AI across the CPG value chain. We’ll explore why 90% of executives say AI is essential to staying competitive, yet 75% admit they don’t know how to deploy it. From SKU-level insights to agentic AI that automates competitive tracking and alerts your field teams, we’ll showcase how today’s most forward-thinking brands are using AI to unlock velocity, reduce waste, and win at the shelf. Whether you're AI-curious or knee-deep in pilots, this session gives you a roadmap for making data actually work for your business. with Chris Hughes, Chief Operating Officer, AisleAI; Kevin Senn, CEO, AisleAI; Steve Quercia, Chief Sales Officer, Spylt
2:00 PM - 2:25 PM	Adult NA: Building the Category -- Learning from NA Spirits brands as they try to create retail scale and capitalize on growing consumer interest. with Scout Brisson, CEO, De Soi; Megan Klein, Founder, Little Saints; Jill Sites, EVP Sales, The Pathfinder
2:25 PM - 2:50 PM	Tackling Tough Decisions -- Koia’s Chris Hunter has built brands across multiple categories; he’ll discuss key decision points for founders and share advice as both a CEO and investor. with Chris Hunter, CEO, Koia
2:50 PM - 3:15 PM	The State of the Canna-Bev -- Amidst massive growth online and shifting regulations at the state and local level, how can cannabis-based beverage brands find a steady state? with Brandon Pollock, CEO, Theory Wellness; Craig Lewis, CEO, Flyers Cocktail Co.; Jennifer Cabrera, Partner, A.Y. Strauss
3:15 PM - 4:30 PM	New Beverage Showdown Semifinal Round -- Location: Floor 1 What innovative brands will get a pass to Day 2 from our judges?
4:30 PM - 6:30 PM	BevNET Live Official Happy Hour -- Location: Floor 1 Exhibit Hall Join the official BevNET Live Happy Hour, also held on-site at the Metropolitan Pavilion, for some time chatting with each other about the day’s lessons over RTD cocktails, hemp-infused beverages, drinks and snacks, before adjourning for the day. Featured beverage brands sampling include Amrita, Brez, Bayou City Hemp Company, Zeroes Beverages and Torch.

Please note that event agendas are subject to change.