Hiyo Crowned Champion of The New Beverage Showdown 22

Mood boosting social tonic hiyo was crowned the winner of BevNET’s New Beverage Showdown 22 today, joining a cohort of well-known beverage brands such as Health-Ade and Rise Brewing Co. who have claimed victory in the bi-annual pitch competition.

Founded earlier this year by college best friends-turned-entrepreneurs, Evan Quinn and George Youmans began experimenting with the idea of a non-alcoholic, alternative social beverage after seeing family members struggle with alcohol-related illnesses which then inspired them to cut alcohol out of their own lives. The pair then pulled in friend Cygne Cooper as its third co-founder and together they built out the concept for the brand, product and packaging, launching the company with three SKUs in April.

Using a combination of nootropics, adaptogens, and herbal extracts, Hiyo is designed to stimulate mood and create a substitute for the buzz of alcohol, offering consumers a feel-good functionality without the hangover. The brand itself — which stands for Happy In Your Own — offers a distinct range of flavors including Peach Mango, Watermelon Lime and Blackberry Lemon packaged in colorful 12 oz. cans each containing 25 calories and 5 grams of sugar.

The judges’ commentary was overwhelmingly positive towards hiyo in both rounds of the competition, though, in the finals, the panel agreed hiyo should work to reduce its use of added sweeteners to firmly position itself within the better-for-you space. Although the product currently is only available in brick and mortar retailers in Los Angeles, the judges believe in terms of scalability hiyo is poised for success as it continues to find additional placements on shelf.

“The non-alcoholic category is one to be reckoned with and it’s one that is deserving of shelf-space,” said hiyo co-founder Evan Quinn. “Hiyo is not going to be the only brand on the shelf that is trying to serve this need. We are excited to try to become a market leader in this category but I think there is plenty of opportunity for other brands, there’s plenty of market share to be had.”

Judges for the final round included BevNET founder and CEO John Craven; Eric Kacker, Team Lead of Marketing Operations at The Coca-Cola Co.; Ken Sadowsky, Senior Advisor at Verlinvest; and Maxine Kozier Koven, Co-Managing Director at LDR Ventures & Consulting.

The competition was sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company’s Venturing and Emerging Brands (VEB) unit.

Hiyo emerged victorious from a field that included five other finalists, including alt-dairy pecan milk maker THIS PKN, tea and lemonade brand Simplicity Beverage Company, functional kid-focused fruit shake Gnubees, pumpkin seed milk startup Patch Organics and functional cold brew coffee Later Days Coffee Co.

As the winner, hiyo will receive a $10,000 awareness-building advertising package and join the ranks of past victors including Agua Bucha, Hoplark Hop Tea, Health-Ade, MALK, Rise Brewing Co. and CANN.

The finalists were chosen from a field of 12 that included spirulina-infused drink FUL Foods, circadian rhythm-balancing beverage brand Intent, cocktail-alternative Mingle Mocktails, mission-driven hydration brand Change Water and low-caffeine cascara beverage ALLDAE Cascara.