“I can’t compete on money with Coke and Pepsi. I can’t compete on distribution. But I can compete on speed..”
That philosophy — launch quick, get feedback and either kill the brand or invest more in it — is how Dyla Brands founder and CEO Neel Premkumar has grown his company since launching in 2011. Along with water enhancer drops Stur, Dyla is behind rising coffee brand FORTO, which sells its line of 2 oz. organic cold brew shots in 50,000 retail stores nationwide. Speaking at BevNET Live Winter 2018 earlier this month, Premkumar went deep into what’s worked for him, what hasn’t, and his advice to entrepreneurs on navigating the market with a fast-growing brand transitioning from small startup to a national player.
In this clip, Premkumar talks about how he uses data and market analysis to craft successful brands, how he weeds out ideas that don’t work, and why sees FORTO and Stur as an opportunity to revive stagnant categories.