Plant-based protein, dairy's efforts to regain relevance, and the continued ascent of CBD and hemp were a few of the major trends to emerge from Natural Products Expo West 2019, according to a show recap presented yesterday by market research group SPINS.
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.
Three years ago, Giancarlo Chersich purchased nitro-infused cold brew coffee brand Lucky Jack alongside celebrity fitness trainer Jillian Michaels, with a game plan to use Michaels as a megaphone to raise brand awareness in order to increase retail presence in key markets.
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.
Evy Chen is the founder of Evy Tea, a company that makes a line of shelf-stable cold brewed teas using organic ingredients and honey as the sweetener. The brand was one of the first to market making cold brewed teas, setting it apart from competitors.
Clayton Christopher, the founder of Sweet Leaf Tea and Deep Eddy Vodka, told BevNET that he’d left an active role within the CAVU organization earlier this year, although he is continuing to work as a board member and advisor to the brands in his portfolio from CAVU’s first two investment pools.
A serial beverage entrepreneur, Joe Heron’s third act is perhaps his most ambitious. Having founded and successfully sold two brands -- functional drink Nutrisoda and Crispin, a line of premium hard ciders -- Heron is now at the helm of Copper & Kings, a brandy-centric distillery. In our interview, Heron explained why “the number one characteristic of an entrepreneur is stupidity,” and why the company “behaves like an incumbent, not a challenger.”
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 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.
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.
In this episode, Chris Hollod, a venture capitalist focused on early-stage consumer brands, discussed his investment philosophy and why digital strategy is at the top of his list when evaluating brands. He also explained why he believes that his job requires him to not only to follow and facilitate innovation, but to predict it.
The market is wide open for beverage entrepreneurs to jump in with innovative and engaging new CBD and hemp-based drinks. Yet established players are equally focused on the potential for CBD as an opportunity to extend existing product lines and inject new energy and dimension to their brands.
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.
Andrew Aussie is the president of Up to Good, a beverage company that is upcycling coffee waste to offer a unique energy drink. The beverage is brewed with cascara, the coffee cherry, which is normally disposed of in coffee processing. The brand believes its sustainable focus, direct trade practices and mission to give back to coffee farmers will resonate with millennials.
