Election years are marked by major changes in leadership. But while the U.S.A. has until this November to decide their next representatives, United Sodas of America has already elected its new president.
The New York-based soda brand announced today Dan Herndon as its new president; he comes to the brand from his prior role as the VP of sales and marketing for Hazelnut Growers of Oregon Cooperative and previously held various positions at Acosta Sales and Marketing and Peeled Snacks.
As well, Carli Nicholas has been named head of marketing. Nicholas most recently served as director of marketing at energy brand Juvee, prior to its acquisition by Sprecher Brewing this year, and has also held marketing roles at Red Bull and VICE Media.
United Sodas produces a line of organically sweetened, low calorie sodas available in 12 varieties. While some flavors invoke CSD classics, such as Gingery Ale and Cherry Pop, much of the portfolio provides unique additions to the category such as Pear Elderflower, Lemon Verbena, White Grape and Blackberry Jam.
The drinks contain 30 calories per 12 oz. can and bear a distinctive, minimalist design featuring bright colors intended to pop on shelf. Each can retails for $2.49 each and is available online for $34.99 per 12-pack.
The new executives come into the four-year-old brand after it closed a $4.25 million seed funding round last fall, and speaking to BevNET, Herndon said his key goals are to grow United Soda’s distribution footprint and build the brand’s awareness as part of the fast-rising better-for-you CSD trend.
“I think the brand sits at the edge of [having] our really blow up year over the next two years,” Herndon said. “We’re working with some of the DSD players in some of the major cities, and we can build out around that and fill in the gaps. And at that point, we’re starting to take some shots this year, in 2024, we’re starting to take shots at the next level, which is that supermarket area.”
Herndon will oversee the bulk of United Soda’s day-to-day business, including go-to-market strategy and logistics. Meanwhile, United Sodas co-founder and CEO Craig Roscoe will remain in his current position, but his focus will now be primarily on investor relations and “brand vision,” the company said.
Roscoe, who as of 2022 was also the company’s largest shareholder, co-founded United Sodas in 2019 alongside brand strategist Marisa Zupan. Zupan served as the company’s CEO from its inception until summer 2022 when she stepped down and moved into an advisory role.
Speaking on the call with Herndon, United Sodas COO and head of brand Kate Reeder said that while Zupan “will always be in the sphere of United Sodas” she is currently focused on consulting for other brands.
According to Herndon, United Soda’s seed round last year helped to bring both him and Nicholas into the business. Much of the funding is also now going towards production, sales and distribution support, including a new partnership with his old employer, Acosta Sales and Marketing.
As well, United Sodas is continuing to seek out additional investment, which Herndon said is Roscoe’s primary focus this year. Although he declined to specify what persons or firms participated in the seed round last year, only saying it was “private money,” Herndon said the funding came from a mix of new and existing investors.
Now the brand wants to find more outside investors to bring in, although finding the right partners is important.
“Just as we want to focus on our partners that we choose as customers and retailers and distributors to work with, to be a win-win, we’re just as sharp on bringing in the right kinds of investment partners too,” he said.
The ‘Soda 2.0’ Opportunity
United Sodas initially launched during the pandemic in 2020, originally as a D2C exclusive before branching out into brick-and-mortar retail. The company is now planning to relaunch its subscription service later this year, after pausing the system several years ago.
The sodas are currently sold in around 2,500 retail stores, primarily in the natural channel with accounts such as Sprouts, Erewhon, Central Market and Jewel-Osco, as well as specialty and hospitality accounts like The Tin Building in New York, Malibu Farm Cafe in California and all locations of the experiential art exhibit chain Color Factory.
Since its launch, the better-for-you soda category has seen rapid growth with the rise of functional prebiotic brands like Olipop and Poppi, while the larger CSD strategics have embraced Zero Sugar lines as a top growth driver for the category.
Herndon said United Sodas sees itself as filling a white space between those two innovations – the drinks aren’t functional, but are also naturally sweetened with cane sugar, erythritol and stevia. The goal is that United Sodas can meet the same need as a soda, as a mid-day or meal time refreshment beverage, with a cross-generational consumer base ranging from kids to the elderly.
The brand is currently distributed through broadline distributors KeHE and UNFI, as well as select DSD houses. Now, Herndon said the brand wants to build out its presence in the conventional grocery channel where it can introduce itself to more mainstream consumers.
United Sodas currently has about 12 employees, along with outsourced support from Acosta and other partners. Although there are no plans for more hiring this year, Herndon said there is a “five year plan” in place and will likely seek to expand the team sometime in 2025.
Meanwhile, Nicholas will be spearheading new marketing efforts, beginning with a project to rejuvenate the brand’s social media presence.
“We’ve had to be really careful with our resources, just being a startup, in the past and where we’re putting our efforts from a marketing perspective,” Reeder said. “And so Carli, coming on board, has really taken over our social channels and is just building up that community and engaging more with our fans.”
Herndon believes that the brand can achieve around 60% year-over-year growth in 2024, however, even as United Sodas makes a concerted push into conventional accounts the company is being cautious in who it partners with in order to avoid stretching its resources too thin.
“We want controlled growth,” he said. “So are we after distribution? Absolutely. We are still pursuing the natural channel, we’re still pursuing the specialty channel, we’re now starting to go after key strategic grocery retailers. But we are not about ‘grow at all costs.’”