Sanzo Grows With Pomelo & Multipacks
A resurgence in sodas may suggest a hint of sparkling water fatigue from consumers – but you wouldn’t guess it from the rapid growth of Asian-inspired seltzer Sanzo. The New York-based company has been widely embraced over the past 18 months, picking up new distribution, licensed partners and fundraising to continue driving growth.
At the brand’s Expo West booth, the newly launched Pomelo flavor (and revamped packaging design) was the star attraction, but the introduction of 6-count and 12-count multipacks – the format which drives over 90% of flavored sparkling water sales, according to Sanzo – may represent an even more significant step.
According to founder and CEO Sando Roco, the new 6-packs are entering a “high percentage of our existing retail partners” this month at $9.99, but the format is also opening new doors.
“We are excited that over 1,000 new doors have already signed on in key regions such as the Northeast, California and the Pacific Northwest, and we expect to onboard more strategic partners in key regions coming out of Expo West and heading into peak season,” Roco said.
The company is also touting the multipacks as another step forward in its mission to bridge Eastern and Western cultures.
Sanzo’s launch of the Multipack reflects a deeper purpose. Sanzo’s mission from launch has been centered on bridging Eastern and Western cultures, as it “reflects a trust that the product will be loved and shared with family and friends.”
“We’re working with each retail partner’s specific needs to drive trial and value for their customers,” Roco said. “But as our existing retail partners have seen with our brand to-date, we will continue to strategically invest in the growth of the brand; we view all of our retail relationships as true partnerships.”
GEN Z Water Sold to Langers
They grow up so quick.
Less than two years after hitting the market, Arkansas-based GEN Z Water has been acquired by family owned beverage company Langers Juice for an undisclosed amount.
One of several non-PET packaged water startups to emerge in the wake of Liquid Death’s rise, GEN Z has made its tongue-in-cheek approach to marketing “flavorless transparent liquid” its calling card. The company launched online in August 2021 with in reusable 20 oz. aluminum bottles (available individually and in 12-packs), and has since entered brick-and-mortar retailers in the Midwest, as well as moving into Target.
“We’ve never taken ourselves too seriously at GEN Z, but we’re serious about Langers being the right company to keep GEN Z going strong,” said Erin Campbell, co-founder and chief marketing officer at GEN Z, in a press release. “With the focus always being on the Gen Zers who drink water and on creating new critter designs to give flavorless transparent liquid, aka water, the bottle it deserves, we’re excited about this new chapter. Langers is a family-run business looking to future-proof their legacy business. With Langers GEN Z is in good hands…”
For California-based Langers, adding GEN Z gives the beverage maker a stake outside of fruit-based categories, as represented by its Langer Farms juices and No Worries cocktail mixer brands. The company markets an organic flavored sparkling water and a caffeinated sports drink called LyteAde.
“Acquiring GEN Z is a wonderful continuation of Langers portfolio. Seeing a company emerge on the market with an aim to provide sustainable solutions to single-use plastic that works and also carries a conversational message with its target audience is impressive. What we value the most is listening to our clients and GEN Z is the right answer in the right time. We love the playfulness of this company; we confidently look forward to propelling what they started,” says Bruce Langer, president of Langers.
Catching up with BevNET while attending this year’s Expo West, GEN Z co-founder Doug Batie said he was “not shocked” that his company achieved such an early exit, as the company’s trajectory since launch has put it on track to “skip” scaling and go right to a sale. A former executive at Welch’s, Batie noted his familiarity and connections with Langers helped create the relationship, and that the pitch wasn’t difficult once Langer understood how the brand is positioned around “aspirational” marketing rather than emphasis on the liquid itself.
As for the product itself, Batie said GEN Z will continue to utilize its network of co-packers as it transitions fully into its new parent company. The Arkansas-based brand will also maintain its geographic focus on growing accounts in the Midwest, where it is carried at chains like Target and OnCue.
Meanwhile, Batie’s attention is set to shift exclusively, for the moment, to his beverage consultancy firm Fulcrum Collective. Alongside senior partner Neil Mellers, the group is seeking to “tip the scales in favor of founders” as they advise CPG brands – including pancake and waffle mix maker Happy Grub – on growth and development. The group expects to be working with a cohort of around five to six brands by the end of this year.
Erythritol Anxiety? Not Yet
If you were expecting last month’s buzzy report on the potential dangers of erythritol to be a major point of discussion amongst beverage brands at this year’s Expo West, think again.
To recap, a recent study in the scientific journal Nature Medicine reported that erythritol appeared to be causing blood platelets to clot more easily in patients. Research also indicated that people with existing risk factors for heart disease were twice as likely to experience a heart attack or stroke if they had higher levels of erythritol in their blood compared to lower levels.
That bit may make a good headline, but the beverage entrepreneurs we spoke with at the show who are actively working with the sweetener didn’t view the study as a make-or-break moment for erythritol.
One natural energy drink brand leader noted that the ingredient has been recognized as GRAS by the FDA for several decades, while also questioning the dosages administered to subjects in the study. Another noted that, across the range of sugar alternatives currently available, erythritol has established itself as superior to others, despite what this new study may suggest.
Most notably, none of the people we spoke to who actively use erythritol had any plans to stop doing so – at least for the moment.
Valley Isle Taking Hawaiian Kombucha To The Mainland
Bryan Willard has operated Maui-based Valley Isle Kombucha strictly from its home on the Hawaiian islands since he founded the company in 2011, but the brand is currently gearing up to take its raw kombucha to the mainland in order to compete in a larger market.
Valley Isle has signed on with UNFI, KeHE and Kroger to begin distributing stateside at the end of the month utilizing a co-packer in Colorado. At Expo West, Willard said the kombucha brand owns its own production facility in Hawaii but needed the co-manufacturing partner on the mainland to keep costs down as it expands into California, the Rocky Mountain region and the Northwest. Its plan is to use its existing partnerships with hotels, retailers and hospitality groups like T S Restaurants to leverage its growth beyond the Hawaiian Islands.
“It’s been blood, sweat and tears with COVID, with supply chains, even shifting glass to Hawaii,” Willard said. “It wasn’t an easy decision because I’m taking a 10-year model on Hawaii – it’s where we were born in – and moving it.”
Valley Isle will start with four varieties: Pineapple Ginger, Blue Hawaii, passion fruit Local Lilkoi and northwestern exclusive Twilight: Huckleberry Elderberry offered in 16-ounce glass bottles. Its other flavors, including its CBD-infused variety, are expected to make the leap to the mainland later on.
The most important thing is to continue to make the same Valley Isle product that has been produced for over 10 years on Maui, Willard emphasized. He has been in conversations with the Colorado co-manufacturing plant for about three years to make the deal happen and has even made two recent trips to the facility to make sure the product has the same flavor profile as it does on the island.
“You’ve got to watch the integrity of the product. I’ve seen it so many times,” he said. “People pump out so much kombucha and they lose its integrity. We’re all about quality control and we just want to keep it that way.”
New Better-for-You Functional Kids Innovations
As parents continue to seek out better-for-you alternatives for their children, functional beverage makers introduced several new kid-friendly line extensions at Expo West 2023.
Juice shots brand KOR Shots unveiled its kids line at the show, with Orange, Apple and Dragon Fruit Elderberry varieties containing Vitamins C and D3, probiotics and omega-3. The organic shots will be sold in 6-packs of 1.7 oz. shots.
According to CEO Jordan Retamar, who became a father during the pandemic, the line is intended to provide parents with a healthy, low sugar and easy-to-transport beverage they can give their kids. He noted the shots naturally fit in a lunch box and can serve as a better-for-you alternative to juice boxes. The line is launching in Whole Foods and Sprouts stores.
Meanwhile, Unilever-owned powdered hydration brand Liquid I.V. previewed its For Kids line, which features a similar formulation to its core products but in half-size stick packs. The powdered drinks will launch in Meijer and HyVee stores beginning next month in 8-packs of 0.28 oz. sticks. Flavors include Tropical Punch and Concord Grape.
In a more traditional kids beverage format, enhanced water brand Shine Water – which features Vitamin D, electrolytes and antioxidants – launched a line of zero sugar kids pouches in Fruit Punch, Mixed Berry Acai, Watermelon Blackberry and Strawberry Lemon flavors. For the launch, the brand has partnered with Dreamworks to feature characters from the Trolls movies on its packaging.
The drinks are available in 8-packs of 6 oz. pouches in Meijer stores, among other locations. Despite a premium price point, representatives for the brand said early sales have been competitive with leading pouch brands like Capri Sun, selling about 6.5 units for every 10 Capri Sun units sold.