Having spent the last decade investing in food and beverage brands through venture capital firms, Tom First is once again building a product and brand from the ground up with Culture Pop, a new probiotic soda that launched online and in select retailers this summer.
Based in Boston, Culture Pop features a line of plant-based, low calorie sodas featuring fruit and herbal inspired flavor profiles. The roster includes four varieties: Ginger Lemon & Turmeric, Orange Mango Chili & Lime, Watermelon Lime & Rosemary and Wild Berry & Peppercorn. Each SKU contains 40 calories and retails for $1.99-$2.49 per 12 oz. can.
First said the brand, available in about 20 Boston-area independent retailers, is currently in a soft launch mode as he works to refine the formulation and market strategy before undertaking a more aggressive regional roll out.
“We’ve started off just delivering it ourselves and working directly with the accounts,” he said. “Over the next couple months, we’ll tackle a bit more of a broader strategy from a distribution standpoint, but the goal is to go slowly and prove it works and refine the product as much as I can to get it ready for primetime. Then we’ll start to expand outward, but we need to do it the right way.”
According to First, Culture Pop was inspired by the growing popularity of non-alcoholic sparkling beverages made using real herbs and spices, in contrast to syrup-based and heavily sweetened CSDs. As well, he said he wanted to create a functional product around gut health, noting that the pandemic has grown consumer awareness about the importance of overall wellness.
The brand also launches as more beverage companies attempt to carve out a space in the market for better-for-you alternative sodas. Products such as Olipop, Poppi, and most recently Health-Ade’s Booch Pop line have focused on gut health by emphasizing functional benefits from prebiotics.
“My number one goal was to make something that tasted great, and that was lightly sweet,” he said. “There’s a consumer that is perfect for seltzer, like a Spindrift or Polar. But there’s a large subset of consumers that want more taste and some sweetness but they don’t want a sugar bomb.”
Joining First as partners in the brand are The Guard Agency founder and principal Andrew Guard, who previously held executive positions at Biena Foods and Purity Organic, and ROOK/NYC founder and creative director Mark Christou, who developed Culture Pop’s packaging. The company has also brought in additional employees to lead sales and finance.
Initial response to Culture Pop has been strong, First said, with some retailers going through “30 or 40 cases in a couple weeks” despite limited marketing. In addition to brick-and-mortar retail, the brand is also available for direct shipping online, where it sells for $39.99 per 16-pack. Though ecommerce will be an important pillar of the business, First said the company will primarily focus on building a presence in retail.
Culture Pop’s launch comes eighteen years after First sold Nantucket Nectars, the startup juice brand he co-founded in 1989, to Cadbury Schweppes (it is now owned by Keurig Dr Pepper). Since then First has been focused on investing, previously at venture capital firm First Beverage Group in 2011 and last year launching TF Ventures. First has also held board seats and advisory roles at various beverage companies in this time, including past chairman positions at Purity Organic and OWATER.
The new brand is primarily funded through TF Ventures; First said he intends to continue operating the capital firm while building Culture Pop. Though First has readily slid back into the role of a CEO, he said he isn’t committed to staying in the position long term, noting he wants to helm the brand early on in order to get it up and running but may seek outside talent to take over once the company has found its footing in the market.
In the meantime, First will continue to focus on investing in brands and serving on boards while establishing Culture Pop, but for now he said it was refreshing to hit the pavement and work directly with accounts to get the brand on shelf.
“It’s been fun so far,” he said. “It feels like it’s 1992 all over again.”