Canteen Spirits Names Brian Smith Chief Sales Officer
Austin, Texas-based RTD cocktail brand Canteen Spirits has hired industry veteran Brian Smith as its new Chief Sales Officer, charged with leading the brand’s national expansion.
Smith comes to the startup company from Pabst Brewing Company, where he held the same title and oversaw a 170-person sales team. Prior to Pabst, he held sales and marketing positions at Mark Anthony Brands – serving as VP of key accounts and SVP of sales for Mike’s Hard Lemonade – and previously worked at Gold Coast Beverage and Molson Coors.
“Brian brings the highest level of sales expertise and industry-wide respect to our team and will play an integral role in leading the brand’s next chapter of growth,” said Canteen CEO and co-founder Brandon Cason in a press release.
Canteen was founded in 2019 by Cason and Daniel Barnes, who previously co-founded Waterloo Sparkling Water. The company produces a line of low calorie, 5% ABV vodka sodas available in seven flavors in 12 oz. cans, and last year added a three-SKU canned Gin Spritz line and tequila soda brand Cantina to its offerings. According to the company, the drinks are currently available in over 50,000 retail stores around the country.
In April 2021, Canteen announced it had raised $31 million in debt and equity financing to support its national expansion and opened a 50,000 square foot production facility in Austin.
Cometeer Exec Exits Frozen Coffee Company
Zach Rueda, chief brand officer of Massachusetts-based flash frozen coffee capsule producer Cometeer, has stepped away from the company, according to a LinkedIn post.
Rueda announced the move at the end of last month, stating that he needed to redirect his attention back to the startup he co-founded, gaming platform company WeMod.
“This was a tough decision, but my other rapidly growing company needs me back at the helm. (More on that soon.) However, I’m confident Cometeer is set up for success, and I spent the last few months ensuring a smooth transition,” Rueda wrote. “Words can’t even begin to describe how life-changing an experience helping build Cometeer was. I’m proud of everything we built. We made magic, and we have no plans of slowing down. It was indeed an inflection point in my life.”
Founded in 2014, Cometeer utilizes proprietary technology to produce flash frozen coffee concentrates that can be melted and mixed with water to create a full-flavored, instant cup of joe. Led by co-founder and CEO Matthew Roberts and CTO Douglas Hoon, the startup produces co-branded products with a number of coffee roasters – including Counter Culture, George Howell and Red Bay – and also sells direct to offices.
According to LinkedIn, Rueda joined the company in 2017 as an investor and strategic advisor before coming on full time as VP of marketing and digital in 2018. He was named chief brand officer in 2020. Prior to Cometeer, Rueda co-founded gaming app developer Daring Development and in 2015 co-founded WeMod, where was CEO until 2018 and has served as executive chairman since 2019.
Rueda said he would remain closely involved with Cometeer, however, adding that he is “beyond excited to share what’s brewing in our future.”
Pickle Juice Names Two New Directors
The Pickle Juice Company announced this month that it has promoted national sales manager Blake Boulton to Director of Sales and Marketing and operations manager Paul Valdez to Director of Operations.
“Both Blake and Paul have an extreme passion for the product that reflects the company values and they have both contributed to the success of Pickle Juice. We are proud of their performance so promoting was a no-brainer,” said EVP Filip Keuppens in a press release. “Pickle Juice has made great strides from an internal operations standpoint and we are excited for future growth as our new offices are set to be completed by the end of the month.”
According to the company, Boulton joined Pickle Juice in 2020 after prior positions as a sales account executive for MosquitoNix and as a licensing executive at the National Rugby League. At Pickle Juice, Boulton has focused on day-to-day management of the brand’s grocery and outdoors channel sales and has also “developed and leveraged event partnerships to increase sales [and] maximize relationships.”
“I am extremely grateful for Pickle Juice and the opportunities they have given to me,” Boulton said in the release. “I look forward to working closely with the executives to increase sales and get the Pickle Juice brand out there for all to try.”
Valdez joined the brand in 2018, and previously served in the U.S. Navy as a Nuclear Machinist Mate from 2005 to 2011. He later worked for PepsiCo as a maintenance technician.
Breakthru Beverage Group Names Engels to VP Role
North American distributor Breakthru Beverage Group announced this week that it has named Erin Engels as VP, Strategy & Corporate Development. According to the company, Engels will manage the “continuous evolution” of its multi-year growth and innovation strategy.
“Erin is the right executive for this role—an innovative, results-driven leader with a proven ability to create and execute growth strategy and deliver outstanding business results,” said Maggie Lapcewich, EVP, Chief Growth Officer, in a release. “Her experience leading agile, large-scale teams and customer-centric focus make her a great fit for Breakthru.”
Engels joins the company from food and kitchenware provider Sysco, where she held a number of positions, including VP of Sales, Strategy and Execution, since 2009.
“Breakthru is making bold moves toward achieving our vision of becoming the leading beverage company in North America,” Lapcewich said. “We have a defined vision and carefully crafted strategic plan that will help drive our business forward while supporting our supplier and customer partners’ goals. Bringing Erin onto our team is just one, very exciting part of this. We look forward to Erin’s leadership in strengthening our business, evolving where we invest and how we grow our capabilities to align with consumer demands, customer needs, and supplier aspirations.”