Sunday: RTD Spirits Program on December 8

Print the agenda for Sunday, December 08

Please note: All times US Pacific Time

• 12:00 PM-3:00 PM

  Beverage School Presentations + Networking

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  The day before BevNET Live, industry newcomers can learn the basics of running a beverage business and jumpstart their networking at Beverage School. Experts will present on the 5 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.
• 12:05 PM-12:20 PM

  Beverage School: Entrepreneur Interview 1

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  Try My T CEO Dawn Patton tells us what it’s like on the ground and in the mix for recently-launched beverage brands that have started to grow, from financing pressures to retail channel successes and failures.

  • Dawn Patton, Founder & CEO, Try My T
• 12:20 PM-12:40 PM

  Beverage School: Route to Market - Getting Your Product on the Shelf

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop

  • Bill Sipper, Managing Partner, Cascadia Managing Brands
• 12:40 PM-1:00 PM

  Beverage School: Design and Branding

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  In this talk, we’ll dig into game-changing tips to sharpen your brand positioning and create packaging that pops. Learn how techniques like the “Flip It” test can reveal if your brand truly stands out—and how to turn a powerful position into packaging that grabs attention and wins over consumers.

  • Kelly Criswell, Founder, Mudge
• 1:00 PM-1:20 PM

  Beverage School: Don’t Lose Your IP

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  This presentation covers essential trademark concepts, including trademark use, enforcement, and policing against infringement, with a focus on descriptiveness and brand distinctiveness. It discusses options for handling trademark violations, especially on Amazon, and recent challenges with Amazon’s takedown system. The session also addresses trade dress protection, including the importance of safeguarding a brand’s look and feel, and highlights the impact of AI on brand protection.

  • Amanda Roach, Partner, UB Greensfelder, LLP
• 1:20 PM-1:35 PM

  Networking Break

• 1:35 PM-1:50 PM

  Beverage School: Entrepreneur Interview 2

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  Agua Bonita founder Kayla Castenada gives us the lowdown on what her journey has been like -- from launching the brand to raising more than $1 million in funding.

  • Kayla Castaneda, Founder & CEO, Agua Bonita
• 1:50 PM-2:10 PM

  Beverage School: Angel and Venture Financing for CPG Companies

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  This seminar will cover the challenges and opportunities CPG companies face in securing funding and address key strategies for attracting investors.

  • Jeremy Halpern, Partner; Co-Lead, Food and Beverage Group, Nutter
• 2:10 PM-2:30 PM

  Beverage School: Debt Financing 101

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
  This presentation outlines critical financial strategies for startup success, from securing initial capital and managing production, marketing, and distribution costs, to maintaining a cash flow buffer and controlling hiring expenses. Emphasis is placed on the importance of financial planning and leveraging data, along with a focused approach to owning and deeply serving a targeted market. These insights are designed to help startups build a solid foundation and make informed, strategic decisions.

  • Zach Martin, Managing Director, Head of Originations and Capital Markets, Assembled Brands
• 2:30 PM-4:00 PM

  Beverage School: Expert Round Tables

  Location: Bayview Ballroom - Rooftop
• 2:00 PM-5:00 PM

  RTD Spirits Track

  Location: California Ballroom - Lobby Level
  On Sunday, December 8th, from 3PM to 5:00 PM PT, the BevNET team will kickstart BevNET Live with a spotlight on spirits and RTD cocktails. The program will include an investor panel and the Cocktail Showdown pitch competition, featuring the most promising new RTD cocktail brands on the market. Attendees will be able to sample the products of all participants, as well as continue their networking at the BevNET Live Welcome Reception.
  
  Our spirits coverage will carry over to day 1 of BevNET Live with a morning main stage presentation and afternoon breakout session track. Registered attendees of BevNET Live are invited to attend the Sunday spirits program.
  
  If you're looking to dive deeper into beverage alcohol, stick around for Brewbound Live on December 11th and 12th to boil down all aspects of the beer and beyond business so you can keep up (and stay ahead) between batches.
• 2:00 PM-2:45 PM

  Challenges for RTD Startups

  Location: California Ballroom - Lobby Level
  Our experts take the audience through three key challenge points for emerging RTD brands.
  

  • Refining Go-To-Market Strategy - Gustavo Aguire, VP Brand Acceleration, InvestBev
    
  • Guarding Cash Flows - Maria Pearman, Advisory Partner, GHJ
    
  • Tactics In the Market - Dale LaFlam, Founder, 5:30 Somewhere
    
    

  • Gustavo Aguirre, VP of Brand Innovation, InvestBev
  • Maria Pearman, Advisory Partner, GHJ
  • Dale LaFlam, Founder, 5:30 Somewhere
• 2:45 PM-3:10 PM

  RTD at Scale - Strategy and Tactics

  Location: California Ballroom - Lobby Level
  This set of panelists – a longtime category management expert and a pair of the fastest-growing RTD brands in the country – explain the ways that opportunities and challenges change when a brand starts to scale: resource needs, negotiation advantages, and the skills founders need to succeed.

  • Adam Kost, Founder & CEO, Dirty Shirley
  • Cassie Finley, VP of Customer Development, Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits
  • Forrest Dein, Co-Founder & CMO, Juneshine
• 3:10 PM-3:40 PM

  Sampling of Cocktail Showdown Products & Networking

  Location: California Ballroom Prefunction Area
• 3:40 PM-4:40 PM

  BevNET Live Cocktail Showdown

  Location: California Ballroom - Lobby Level
  Designed to support and showcase new products and promising founders, the BevNET Cocktail Showdown focuses on the innovators and entrepreneurs designing the products of tomorrow. The competition provides a platform for the hottest new RTD cocktail brands to gain awareness amongst the industry.
• 4:40 PM-4:55 PM

  Investor Profile: Goat Rodeo

  We have a fireside talk with Carlton Fowler, co-founder of influential spirits VC firm Goat Rodeo about the way he and other investors are looking at entrepreneurial companies in the spirit space.

  • Carlton Fowler, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Goat Rodeo Capital
• 4:55 PM-5:00 PM

  BevNET Cocktail Showdown Winner Announcement

• 5:00 PM-6:30 PM

  BevNET Live Welcome Reception

  Location: California Ballroom Prefunction Area
  Join us for beverages, light appetizers and networking. BevNET Live registration and a valid ID are required to attend.