While powders, shots and RTDs have become the go-to formats in the burgeoning functional beverage category, new entrant Roxii Supercube is setting its sights on an entirely different section of the grocery store: the frozen aisle.
The Minneapolis, Minn.-based brand is the brainchild of nutritionist Belle Robinson and Pete Speranza, who previously served as CEO of plant-based frozen food brand Wicked Kitchen and spent more than two decades at General Mills. Positioned as “the world’s first functional ice cube,” Roxii will sit on-shelf alongside products like frozen fruit, smoothie cubes and frozen overnight oats bowls.
Available in four flavors at launch – Chill (Tart Cherry + Vanilla), Glow (Raspberry + Lemonade), Hydration (Cucumber + Lime + Mint) and Immunity (Lemon + Ginger + Honey) – the ice cubes feature an array of on-trend functional ingredients like collagen, biotin, L-theanine, zinc and magnesium, depending on the variety, addressing a broad range of need states. Additionally, each cube delivers 6 grams of fiber.
Roxii will begin rolling out to retailers across Minnesota and Chicago next month with an SRP of $11.99 per 4-pack. Speranza, the brand’s CEO, expects Roxii to be available in a few thousand stores by next summer, noting that he is currently in talks with several national retailers who are “hyper-excited” to bring the products on-shelf.
“Instead of going for powders, we’re showing consumers there’s another option [elsewhere in the store]. There’s a built-in audience [for functional products] already, but I think we’ll draw new users and even younger consumers to the frozen set,” said Speranza.
The impetus for the new brand – which is being funded by a single, undisclosed investor – came after Robinson spent years adding different superfoods and adaptogens to her water based on how she wanted to feel.
“As a nutritionist, I knew what worked. As a busy woman, I needed it to be easy. So, I froze it,” wrote Robinson on LinkedIn. “What if feeling good was as easy as dropping ice into water? So, that’s exactly what I made.”
Route to Market
Functional ingredients have existed in the food and beverage market for years, but rising consumer interest in health and wellness has recently propelled the category to new heights. One of the largest trends in the segment this year has been personalized nutrition, with shoppers seeking specific nutritional traits to tailor their purchases to individualized need states, according to SPINS.
The Roxxi team chose to “stack” its hero ingredients to provide consumers with multiple benefits in each flavor, unlike some products on the market that only feature one functional attribute. To create the product, Speranza and Robinson partnered with global taste and nutrition company Kerry on a six-month-long R&D process.
“We picked the categories and the products and [Kerry] helped us with the flavor profiles and the flavor experience that consumers are going to get,” said Speranza. “They also helped figure out the melting time – because this is a more experiential product than powders and shots.”
He continued, “It’s about the experience of dropping [the cube] in water and seeing the color infuse into the glass and getting more flavor [than other products] right away. The flavor profiles we can get with a cube versus a powder are night and day.”
On the branding side, the Roxii team worked with Minneapolis-based marketing agency Broadhead, which helped dial in the brand’s target audience of Gen Z — particularly individuals who are active on social media and can tap into the “shareability” of Roxii.
The cubes work just as well in 12 oz. of liquid as they do in 48 oz. of liquid, as Roxii’s consumer research revealed that this target demographic prefers the cube to linger throughout the day. The product was formulated to pair with a wide variety of drinks, from water to prebiotic sodas to cocktails or mocktails.
Speranza is confident that once the brand starts capturing loyal “power consumers” who use the product every day for maximum benefits and share it within their circles, Roxii will quickly start turning.
“The pipeline doesn’t have to be so large to get the turns to a good spot. I truly think that if we get a couple of heavy hitters that really like it, it’ll become their go-to,” he said.
Alongside Speranza and Robinson, Roxii’s full-time team includes Todd Jensen as chief technical officer and Jade LeBleu as social media and content manager. Most recently, Jensen served as VP of innovation at global agricultural supply chain manager and processor ADM.
The company is currently focused on keeping overhead costs low while entering the market, holding off on adding new team members until Roxii begins to gain momentum. Findings from its initial retail launches will help the brand determine potential categories for expansion, such as energy or protein.
“We’re focused on [partnering] with health-forward retailers and a combination of social, digital and guerrilla marketing tactics with those stores to help keep those turns healthy before we start to look to expand. We’ll know what works, what doesn’t and how [the products] resonate with folks,” said Speranza.