In short
Elevator Talk episode featuring feedback from distributor/entrepreneur Chuck Cassano to five early-stage beverage founders: Tart, Soulkist Elixirs, Black Beverly Hills, Boop, and (mentioned in title) “Area 51 Energy” plus “boop”/other brand references.
Guests (backgrounds)
- Lindsay Frederick, founder/CEO of Tart; started Tart in college (Michigan State), built around tart cherry benefits and anti-inflammation/muscle recovery; Tart is organic, additive-free.
- Carlin Blaine, founder/creator of Soulkist Elixirs; 8+ years R&D; specialty contracting background; formulas designed for mood enhancement and “self-connection.”
- Robert China Berry, founder of Black Beverly Hills; Southern California health-focused brand builder for 10+ years; uses sea moss lemonade concept after personal health changes.
- Kim Dickinson, founder of Boop; created a 3 oz whey protein shot after GLP-1 experience and difficulty getting enough protein; launched Jan (pre- and early retail/online).
Key claims + notable examples
- Tart: 8.4 oz cans, 5 ingredients, organic/no preservatives; 4 oz serving recommended for “peak performance”; best sales near kombucha/grab-and-go; price sensitivity around $4 threshold.
- Soulkist: zero sugar/zero carb/zero calorie “light energy” without caffeine; “Focus Energy” for students/techies; yoga/festival-specific elixirs; plan includes LA market test and Coachella targeting; needs real-world festival testimonials.
- Black Beverly Hills: Seamoss Lemonade with ionized/spring/alkaline water, sea moss, organic lemon/ginger; 92 nutrients/minerals claim; ~40 locations; 30-day shelf life; debate on pasteurization vs HPP to scale.
- Boop: 3 oz clear whey shot, 15g protein, 70 calories, zero sugar; designed for two sips; flavors Clementine/Redberry/Fruit Punch (green tea); shelf-stable (TSA-friendly); merchandising in shot sections and refrigerated grocery sets; e-commerce traction and upcoming NY retail.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOChuck Cassano's Journey in Beverage Industry
1:30 to 7:10
Chuck shares his extensive background and insights into the beverage industry.
“You and I have known each other for going on 15 years.”
Advice for Entrepreneurs Pitching
7:10 to 9:36
Chuck discusses what he looks for when entrepreneurs pitch their ideas.
“What are you looking to hear from that person?”
Lindsay Frederick Discusses Tart
9:40 to 10:40
Lindsay shares the inspiration and health benefits behind Tart cherry juice.
“That person is Lindsay Frederick, who's the founder and CEO of Tart.”
Product Packaging and Serving Suggestions
10:40 to 14:03
Lindsay explains the choice of packaging and serving recommendations for Tart.
“Yeah, I think it's good in the beginning, right?”
Understanding Tart Cherry Benefits
14:03 to 18:43
Explore the recommended serving sizes and benefits of tart cherry beverages.
“It's about four ounces is what's recommended per serving.”
Positioning Tart in the Market
18:43 to 19:44
Learn how to effectively position tart cherry products in retail.
“But an individual cans above$4, it's a little bit of a tough sell, I think, for consumers.”
Social Media Strategy for Brands
19:44 to 21:19
Discover the importance of storytelling and founder visibility on social media.
“And I think, again, people want to hear the story behind the brand.”
The Concept Behind Soul Kissed Elixirs
21:46 to 24:48
Understand how Soul Kissed Elixirs aims to enhance mood and connection through energy drinks.
“Soulkissed Elixirs is the culmination of over eight years of research and development.”
The Journey of Soul Kissed Elixirs
24:48 to 28:00
Delve into Carlin's eight-year journey developing his beverage brand.
“Well, a lot of things that are music to my ears, and I'm sure would be music to Chuck's ears as well.”
Exploring Brand Authenticity and Marketing Strategies
28:00 to 30:24
Learn how authenticity and real consumer feedback can enhance energy drink marketing.
“You got to like, and build authenticity, right?”
Show all 24 chapters
Introduction to Soulkist Elixirs
30:24 to 30:44
Meet Carlin, the founder of Soulkist Elixirs, and learn about his festival-focused strategy.
“Thank you so much for the introduction to soul kiss elixirs.”
Black Beverly Hills: A Sea Moss Success Story
30:44 to 33:40
Discover the journey of Robert China Berry and his Sea Moss Lemonade brand.
“All right, on to our next guest for this episode of Elevator Talk is Robert China Berry, who is the founder of Black Beverly Hills.”
Navigating Retail and Distribution Challenges
33:40 to 36:30
Understand the retail presence and distribution strategies for new beverage brands.
“I'm in a Vallarta supermarket that's been in there for one month so far.”
The Importance of Compliance in Beverage Production
36:30 to 42:00
Learn about the necessary compliance and pasteurization processes in beverage production.
“When I started selling frozen fruit at Whole Foods, we were not pasteurizing our smoothie packs.”
Transition to Boop: Introduction of Kim Dickinson
42:00 to 42:40
The hosts transition to the next guest, Kim Dickinson, founder of Boop.
“If you have more questions, if you want to just bounce ideas off of me, please just reach out.”
The Concept Behind Boop: A Quick Protein Shot
42:40 to 45:50
Kim Dickinson explains the creation and benefits of Boop, a quick protein shot for busy individuals.
“We have Kim Dickinson, who is the founder of Boop.”
Marketing Strategies and Audience for Boop
45:50 to 47:00
Discussion about the target audience for Boop and its potential appeal to a wider market.
“Are retail buyers looking for products like these?”
Sales Channels and Pricing for Boop
47:00 to 49:40
Kim discusses her sales strategy, pricing model, and customer feedback since Boop's launch.
“No, but to answer your question, like merchandising it, where there's all these retailers have shot sections now, right?”
Introduction of Garrett Quigley from Area 51 Energy
53:00 to 54:00
The hosts introduce Garrett Quigley, co-founder of Area 51 Energy, discussing the brand's unique offerings.
“Scaling a beverage brand into major retail comes down to operational readiness.”
Differentiation and Ingredients of Area 51 Energy
54:00 to 56:00
Garrett explains the unique ingredients and brand ethos behind Area 51 Energy drinks.
“It looks like you're dialing in from like a secret location.”
Exploring Area 51 Energy's Origins
56:00 to 57:59
Learn about the motivations behind Garrett's Area 51 Energy brand and its unique positioning.
“Chuck, you would know better than anyone.”
Understanding the Target Audience
58:00 to 1:00:14
Discover who Garrett envisions as the target consumers for Area 51 Energy.
“Yeah, Garrett, I wonder who this might appeal to.”
Brand Marketing and Community Building
1:00:15 to 1:02:20
Examine how Garrett has built his brand's community and the importance of founder transparency.
“I mean, I think that's really impressive.”
Industry Perspectives on Innovation
1:02:21 to 1:04:41
Gain insights on the innovation landscape within the beverage industry and future trends.
“We work with a lot of like VFX artists and stuff that do some really cool art for us.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00This episode is sponsored by Pac-Tec, delivering beverage multi-packing you can trust. Pac-Tec's handles are made from 100 % recycled plastic and are fully recyclable, helping beverage brands reduce waste and support a circular economy. With a minimalist design, durable performance that prevents product loss, waterproof functionality, and custom color options, PacTech keeps products secure while letting your brand shine on shelf. Trusted by leading beverage brands globally, learn more at tasteradio.com forward slash PacTech.
0:46Hey folks, I'm Ray Lateef, the editor and producer of BevNet's Taste Radio podcast, and you're tuning into the latest episode of Elevator Talk, the series that profiles early stage and disruptive brands from across the food and beverage industry. Today's episode will focus on five beverage brands whose entrepreneurs will have an opportunity to hear feedback and advice. From our co-host for this episode, that's Chuck Cassano, who's the founder and CEO of High Touch Libations and the founder and CEO of Pattaya Foods. Chuck, it's so great to see you again. Always good to see you, Ray. Thanks for the invite.
1:21Well, thank you so much for spending your time with us. I know how busy you are with two very distinct businesses that are both growing quite quickly, High Touch Libations and Pattaya Foods. You and I have known each other for going on 15 years. And I first met you when you were just starting out in Pattaya. You had a Pattaya drink called Pattaya Plus. And you were one of the two top brands in our very first New Beverage Showdown competition. Things have evolved. should I say from there. Tell us a bit about yourself, your background and your two businesses. Yeah, got into the natural food industry with Pitaya Foods, right?
2:01Started working down at a nonprofit down in Nicaragua and it was my first taste agriculture. And kind of my aha moment down there was Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the Western hemisphere. And a lot of these farmers couldn't afford pesticides. So I saw Nicaragua as a huge untapped resource for organic raw material and didn't really know what it was, but kind of planted the seed. My time with the nonprofit ended, went back to New York City and coconut water was exploding and acai was exploding. And I was wondering, you know, where my red dragon fruit smoothie was not available. You know, I was having it every day in New York and couldn't find it anywhere in New York.
2:42and went back down to Nicaragua, realized they've got the best red dragon fruit in the world and went down there with a mission to promote organic farming. Started with 10 small family-owned farms. We've gotten over a thousand farms or helped over a thousand farms get USDA certified organic. And we started shipping the product up in five gallon pails. We built the frozen supply chain down there. We were the first ones to export it. And it went to a beverage and we thought, okay, we made it. and started launching in this juice. And it's kind of got all my gray hair from the beverage industry. And we were fortunate enough to launch with this distributor called Green Shoots at the time.
3:25And they were growing rapidly within Whole Foods. This was back in like 2011. And so every time they launched us, they got us authorized in Whole Foods out in the Rocky region, me and my partner. and my girlfriend, now wife, went out to Rocky, the Rocky Mountain region. We demoed every store every day, sometimes twice a day. And really that was like earning my stripes in the beverage industry. And we continued to grow. The problem was that we just were not getting turns off the shelf. The Whole Foods loved the mission that we did. The product tastes awful. It was just a rough go. And while we were doing this, we were looking at the Whole Foods portal, or at the same time, we started smelling just the frozen fruit to these juice bars around San Diego.
4:18And we're looking at our sales and we were lucky to sell one or two bottles of juice at a Whole Foods in La Jolla during the day. But these juice bars were calling us every day, hey, we just sold 50, 60, 100 units of these in one day. Can you come back? And so really pivoted the business to frozen fruit. At the same time, I invested in green shoots as a hedge against Pattaya, thinking they were going to be a huge national DSD. Unfortunately, long story. They went down. They were undercapitalized, growing too fast. But I was fortunate enough to become really good friends with Tsar Danielko, who is the operator in Southern California.
4:56And as they're going bankrupt. I was looking at the P &Ls and Southern California was healthy. So I said, you know, Zara, why don't we just try and be the ones to go to in Southern California and forget around the rest of the country. And that was 15 years ago and probably, you know, 300 brands later that we've launched some big ones. You know, we were the first distributor for Vive and Mush, you know, handful of others that are now in national powerhouses. We helped elevate Poppy down in Southern California. So we've seen a lot of brands come and go. We see a lot of brands on our desk every day.
5:34Battaglia Foods is my other frozen fruit business. We're a national brand from Whole Foods to Walmart and Sprouts. We just did a national rotation with Costco. And so I wear these two hats as a distributor and a brand. And I think it's good as a distributor, right? Because as a brand, I've seen over a thousand distributor contracts, right? And so So we try and take what's best. We try and be brand friendly and really help put brands in the best position to succeed. We are full service DSD. We walk into our retailers. We write our own orders. We merchandise it. So it is that full service. And we kind of dominate the natural food chains, mothers, Lassen's, Air One's, Jimbo's, everyone you want to be in in Southern California.
6:22in, we've recently started to diversify into some Hispanic markets. So we picked up about 100 superior foods in Northgate markets. And I think I'll kind of end it here. But like, what's been interesting is the portfolio that we have at Whole Foods is starting to win in these Hispanic markets. So you're seeing like, the proliferation of like, the like, food is the medicine, like even, you know, high income households are still spending a lot to take care of themselves. And so that's, you know, we haven't had to create a whole new Hispanic portfolio for these customers. We're taking the same stuff that we're selling to Whole Foods and selling it to Northgate.
7:00And it's, it's been great to see. It truly has. And it's been so great to see the evolution of high touch and the impact that you've had on early stage brands. You mentioned a few and, you know, I want to get to the founders for this episode of Elevator Talk, but just quickly, Chuck, when someone pitches you and you're going to hear five pitches today, But when someone pitches you, what really resonates with you in that pitch? What are you looking to hear from that person? I want to know what they're going to be doing in Southern California. Like what have they done so far on their own, right?
7:33Like I don't want to be their first phone call. I want to know that they've hit the streets on their own. They've already been told no a hundred times and they're still at it, right? Like this is not, this business is not for the faint of heart. It takes hustle and capital and, you know, it takes a lot of both, right? And so if you can show me that you're walking the walk and talking the talk and you've got some war stories and you're showing up to a bodega and you're a Honda Civic on ice and you're willing to do crazy shit in the beginning, those are the people we want to pair up with. And just, you know, we want to work with good people.
8:08And we see a lot of crazy entrepreneurs and we try and do our best, but there's a lot of crazy out there. and then listen, every distributor is going to love you if you show up with a customer, right? If you're like, hey, we're already in mother's market. Air One wants us. We just need a distributor. Like that gets us going. That gets the product in the warehouse. That helps us distribute to our other locations and stuff like that. We got to get some business going. We're not going to be your initial sales rep. If you show up and you're like, hey, I landed a distributor. It's game over. Like that's not how it works, right?
8:44It is a team effort, but you got to be leading it. Well, well said, Chuck. And I think you're speaking from the perspective of a distributor in Southern California, but I think your advice is just as applicable to someone who's trying to land a distributor in New York City or Miami or Seattle. Everyone wants and respects folks who have the persistence, who have the hustle, who have the drive to build businesses and to be a straight shooter. Because as you said, I think this industry has a lot of folks in it. And I'm not just talking about entrepreneurs who think other people are going to do the work for them.
9:23And that's not the case. This is a tough business, as you pointed out. But I do think the five founders who are going to be speaking with today all have that drive and determination to do well. I'm excited for you to meet them. Are you ready to meet the first person of this episode. All right. That person is Lindsay Frederick, who's the founder and CEO of Tart. Lindsay, it's great to see you again. Yes. Good to see you too. Thank you for having me. Thanks so much for being on the show. I met you at the Winter Fancy Fair in San Diego, and I was struck by your brand because I am a big fan of Tart cherry juice.
10:01And hey, it's in your name, essentially. Tell us all about your brand. Yeah, so I launched Tart. It is a healthy lifestyle beverage focused around tart, cherry, and mineral water. Tart cherries is a superfood, so it has over 50 health benefits. And we only have five ingredients in tart. All organic, no additives, no preservatives. And yeah. Well, Chuck, you know something about single ingredient or at least ingredient-focused beverage brands, your own. And of course, you've seen many since. What do you think about the idea of being singularly focused or at least a single ingredient brand leading with that as your point of differentiation?
10:42Yeah, I think it's good in the beginning, right? I think it can get you 12, 24 months. I think you can probably get to$1,$5 million worth of sales. And then people are going to start really asking you, like, where else can this brand go, right? Like having like one or two SKUs, we launched as a one SKU wonder and it was really tough. So been there, but, you know, I think, I think cherries are like, they are powerhouses, right? And so like, how do you communicate that story? It's that everybody knows cherries, right? It's not like a super exotic, unknown thing. So like, how do you communicate? Like, like, is there a sourcing story?
11:22Like, are these born in the USA cherries? Like, are these, like, is there something you can get behind there? and I think how you play with your social media is gonna be really important. Who else, who you're gonna get to adopt this and be some like real brand ambassadors for you in the early stages. But yeah, I think it's possible in the early stage to lead but you're gonna have to quickly evolve and expand once you get to those thresholds. Yeah, I love that feedback. I started making Tart on my own in my college kitchen at Michigan State because I wanted to drink tart cherries for all of their health benefits, but I hated the taste.
12:03So it was a very organic integration into my life. And then in turn, an organic integration into building the business. I love the idea of creating more flavors and keeping tart the main focus of each new flavor, but adding other things that are really healthy for you, like ginger, turmeric, blueberries, things like that, to differentiate the other options that we have. and I think so far the thing I love talking about most when pitching tart to someone is the reason that I love to start drinking it which was anti-inflammation and muscle recovery and this is something I've done with taking it to fitness studios near stores that we are in and getting people to try it from fitness studios obviously you know you're going to a yoga class Pilates class things like that you're focused on muscle recovery anti-inflammation being healthy and And we've had a lot of feedback with that, positive feedback.
13:00I can imagine you have because I've tried this product and it's delicious. I have a question about your package type. You're an 8.4 ounce cans. And, you know, certainly there's a number of different packages that you could use for this type of beverage. Did you feel like the can format speaks to the consumer that you're targeting? You know, is it intended to be more of a soda or sparkling water type experience and the can really fits that occasion? I think it can fit in a lot of different categories. And we've seen that as more people are trying it and have their own ideas of how they want to drink it.
13:38I wanted to go for the 8.4 ounce can because you can only have a certain amount of tart sherry per serving. And we're right around that number. And if we were to go up to 12 ounce, it would be much more diluted. And I love the strong taste of the cherry in tart. So I think that we've had some pretty good feedback with that. And people really like the smaller can for that aspect. What's the limitation on the serving of tart cherry? It's about four ounces is what's recommended per serving. But what are you, you said there's like a limitation. Like is a person not supposed to drink more than two of these cans a day?
14:19so for us you you can have more than two cans a day we're like in that number where it's recommended to have four ounces a day i would say if you're having four cans a day that's when it would get a little much but um that's the reason that we didn't want to go up in size because we wanted people to be able to you know indulge when they want so the the first four Four ounces, I just want to be clear, is what is recommended for like peak performance out of tart cherry? Yes. You can't hurt yourself. No, it can't hurt. That's when you look at research studies on tart cherry, they are recommending four ounces for peak performance.
15:00Now we're under that by a little bit. So that way, if you do overindulge in multiple cans of tart, then you're not going to have an unhealthy amount. Got it. Chuck, how would you advise Lindsay to position this product in terms of category? Again, I think you can sort of go the sparkling water route. You could look at soda. You could, I call it a functional beverage, sort of fits in that set. But what do you think is the best approach in terms of talking to retail buyers, talking to distributors about where this would best fit in stores? Yeah, that is like the number one question. I guess like maybe you could look at some previous brands like Cherry Bundy, like, you know, where were they winning?
15:47Where were they set? Where were they losing? Does that brand even still exist today? I think they do. It does. Yeah. You're going to get some feedback. They've already pitched to every retailer, right? And so you're going to have to be answered like, what's different between you and Cherry Bundy and what sets you apart? I think maybe you could be like, hey, we're a modern, younger glow up to Cherry Bundy. and we're going after and bringing a new customer to your set. As far as like positioning, like that's the question every new innovative brand has, right? And I think when you work with distributors, we get that question all the time and we don't always have the answer, but I think we can always like put you in multiple categories and then look at that data and see what's working.
16:35I think you got to know who your customer is. So if you're doing post-recovery workout, like maybe this sits with like sports hydration or something like that, like, or recovery. Functional beverage is a large, large scope, but yeah, it could be in there as well. But yeah, where do your customers want to see this? Is this shelf stable? It is shelf stable for a year. and we've seen the highest sales when it's positioned next to like kombucha and grab and go fridge. And I would say that's very in line with our target customer as well. Okay, it's fair. And Lindsay, what's the price point per can when it's sold at retail?
17:20Per can retail is 435 and we also have four packs that are 1699. I mean, I think that's a fair price for what you're selling, especially for an organic beverage like this. When I saw your packaging, when I saw the four pack, it actually made me wonder about the potential as a non-alcoholic cocktail as an ANA. I mean, we're seeing huge growth in that space as well. But I don't know, walking that line or at least trying to tackle two fronts as an early stage brand can be tough. How would you advise Lindsey Chalk in terms of, you know, taking two different paths for this brand for Tarte? I mean, I think you can test it in the beginning, but you can't mess around too long with that.
18:05And then you got to pick a path. $4.35 retail, you got to get below$4. Like that, it's just, there's a huge threshold between$3.99 and$4.35. Like it's just mentally, you're going to move more units. So whatever you have to do to cogs, production, get line of sight and get there. Because anything. You don't want to be in that area on that small format. It's going to be tough for you to compete. I think, did that answer the question? It did. And I appreciate you being straightforward about that because I think it's a good point. I think for a four pack for$16, you get to that$4 price point. But an individual cans above$4, it's a little bit of a tough sell, I think, for consumers.
18:54Lindsay, I just want to go back to Chuck's note about communication on social. I'm looking at your Instagram page right now, and you're prominently featured in there, which I think is great. I think people want to know the story, know the founder behind the brand. Is anything working for you? I mean, what are people's takeaways from the social? What's been most effective for you? A lot of people love to see the story of how we're building. And I started posting on social media before we even launched. and that way when we launched I had a small following that was behind the brand and knew the story and you know how we got there and they were able to see the grit I put in and so it really resonated well with everyone who we've talked with so far and we're still growing yeah I mean I love that and I think Chuck you agree you were nodding your head I mean sometimes you can go overboard with um stylized imagery or videos that are about you know people working out on the beach and stuff like that.
19:52And I think, again, people want to hear the story behind the brand. They want to see you, the founder, they want to associate whatever you're doing with their own lives. And I think you're doing it pretty well. So they want to see your success, but they want to see your pain too. Yes, exactly. They want to see the proverbial, you are struggling in the water, but not on the beach, in the industry as it is. So So, Lindsay, we're out of time. I can't believe I wish I could speak with you for another half hour. But you know what? When Tarte is on its way to becoming the next billion dollar brand, I have a feeling that we're going to be speaking again soon.
20:28Thank you so much for taking the time to join us today on Elevator Talk. Please stay in touch. Let us know if we can help anyway. You know, I just want to mention this at the top of the show or at least, you know, early into the show. BevNet, I think, is an organization. Certainly, we report on the news, but we're also here to support the community as best as we can. So if there's anything we can do, any questions you have, any introductions that we can make, just shoot a note and we'll do what we can. Yeah. Thank you so much for having me. And Chuck, nice meeting you. Yeah. Thanks, Lindsay. Good luck.
21:00Thank you. Cold brew is booming and functional RTDs are leading the charge. Download From Formulation to Final Sip, a free guide from Vibrant Ingredients and BevNet, where you'll learn how to build scalable, flavor-forward cold brew beverages with protein, L-theanine, and clean caffeine. Grab your copy now at Tastereadio.com slash cold brew. All right, let's get to our next guest. That's Carlin Blaine, who is the founder and creator of Soul Kissed Elixirs. Carlin, it's great to see you. Hey, guys. I'm so happy to be here, and thank you very much for the opportunity. Well, thank you so much for joining us.
21:39Soulkissed Elixirs. Just from the name, I'm not exactly sure what you're selling, but I'm excited to find out. Tell us all about your brand. Yeah, you bet. Soulkissed Elixirs is the culmination of over eight years of research and development. It's a multi-formula brand focused not just on bringing you true next-generation beverages, but on delivering an experience you've never had from an energy or balanced beverage. Each elixir is meticulously tailored and designed to do one main thing, foster a powerful sense of self-connection with a core focus on mood enhancement and inspiration. We got all the bases covered from light energy for the extra conscious consumer, zero calorie, zero carb, zero sugar formula, which I pitch as afternoon energy without the caffeine, all the way to a true performance elixir called Focus Energy, which I designed specifically to assist college students find a natural path away from Adderall and to empower the techies to push through those demanding long weeks of deadlines.
22:41I formulated each elixir, not just with cutting-edge lifestyle ingredients sourced from around the globe, but with intention, the intention to ground you, to inspire clarity, and to foster a genuine sense of connection to yourself in the moment. These sophisticated formulas are what I call true alchemy and can produce some real magic when used with intent. Whether your path is through yoga, festival culture, or anywhere in between, Soulkiss Elixirs offers the most innovative, intentional formulas on the market to help you stay connected and stay inspired. Outstanding. Well, right off the bat, Carlin, I'm looking at your website.
23:21Right. And as you described, you have some energy products and then you have a couple that are described as festival. You have one described as festival and one described as yoga. So I assume that the functionality for your different varieties is specific to a use occasion or a use case. Is that right? It is, sir. It is like, for instance, yoga is when I first came up with the concept, the download. I'm a yogi, so nobody had done it before. So I'm like, you know, why not? Let's develop a recovery beverage for the yoga world. Well, if anybody could can the feeling of what you feel like after a yoga class, I think after all this time, I've done a superb job.
24:05A festival, you know, I saw I saw a need in the marketplace. You go to a festival and you're stuck with high priced water or or alcohol or the sugary energy drinks. people want to go they want to they want to be connected to the music be connected to the scene that's there so that's designed specifically for that and it could be the number one seller i believe everybody wants a part of festival inside of them yeah i would agree at least at certain points of the day um so just just before we get to chuck are you sold anywhere and what's your price point um still in pre-launch um hope to be able to get it you know right around on the$4 mark, I'll break even in retail off the beginning, no problems.
24:47Okay. Well, a lot of things that are music to my ears, and I'm sure would be music to Chuck's ears as well. Just from Carlin's introduction to the brand, Chuck, what are your thoughts on having a multifunction brand, again, where you have varieties that are specific to a festival occasion, a yoga occasion, light energy, or really focused energy? I mean, certainly, you have a lot going on for different consumers at different times of the day. Yeah, I think you can build a little bit of a groundswell within these communities and kind of go from there. Hopefully, it doesn't cap you too much. But I'm just curious about the journey for the last eight years?
25:37Like what, how, how, how, how does it take years to get here? Like, are you working another job? Like, like what I want to know, because I went on your website. There's not a lot of founder information. Like, how are you here in this moment with this brand? There's got to be a better story that's not being told. Great question. Thank you for asking. It was a download. It was one day I was coming home from work. I have a specialty contracting business up here in Marin County. I was tired. I have a hand-carved Buddha from Bali, and I was listening to some chill music, and I asked myself a question.
26:11You know, what could I do or create that would transform my life? And within two minutes, it came back loud and clear. Create a natural energy drink company. I jumped off my sofa. I said, that is so who I am. So I started my research. It was first with the market. And then I started alchemizing, if you will, understanding that the ingredients I'm going to use, they need to be different. They need to be standout ingredients. So it was a big process. I dove deep into the adaptogens and understood them really well. And then smart drugs started becoming popular. I went through all of those, tested them deep myself, put everything together with my lab power brands down in LA where we will be launching.
26:57So as the market changed, the formulas morphed, the brand morphed, and here we are today. One of the reasons it's taken a while is get the sugar content down, my calories right. When I enter the market, I'm playing to win. Have you done a full production? No, not yet. Coming up, I'd say 90 to 120 days in LA. And so what's the launch plan? You don't want this collecting dust in the warehouse? How are we going to get this out in the street? You know, great question. We've got a platform of college athletes for influencers. I have an offshore assistant. We've data mined over 2 ,000 yoga studios. I have a five-store market test down in L.A.
27:51Air One will be one of the stores. So that's the initial plan in a nutshell. Yeah, I would say stay focused, man. You got to like, and build authenticity, right? Like, but find some brand influencers actually have tasted this and want to get behind this, you know, genuinely. I would just be surgical with that. Okay, excellent. I think for me as a consumer, and just as an industry observer and journalist, I think the idea of better for you in clean energy is one that still has yet to be really fully won. You know, you could talk about Bloom or Celsius. Well, you know, Celsius perhaps in the past as being forerunners to the next evolution of better for you energy.
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28:44But I really think that is an unlocked or untapped opportunity at this point. it. Chuck, if you were to advise Carlin, do you think energy is sort of where he should emphasize, you know, marketing and communication about Soulkist? Yeah, I think, listen, if you have a festival drink, load up a van and go to a festival and see if anyone will actually buy it. Give some away and see if anybody will buy this and get some real, like, we need some testimonial, right? If I'm drinking this at a festival, I need to be like, wow, this is better than the alternative. I don't want a sugary drink. I don't want just water.
29:20This is the goods. I just want to see some customer, real life, real world testimonial and reactions. Should be easy to get. Flavored profiles are on point. They're absolutely delicious and they function really well. I can't wait to try it. What's the big festival in California? It's not Lollapalooza. What am I thinking of? Coachella? Coachella. Coachella. Are you planning to be at Coachella, Carlin? I designed it for Coachella. There we go. Let's go. Okay. Well, make sure you have enough product on hand. I've got to ask why you're not drinking one right now, though. It's my own mix inside. Dr.
29:59Jim's smart drugs. You're missing a branding opportunity right now. I guess so. We could use some Instagram love, Soulkissed Elixirs. Well, it's not – I believe you're in California, so it's still 1039 a.m. there. I don't know if that's festival hour. I guess the festivals go on every day and all day. So the any days festival hour or any, any hours festival. They say that right. Any days festival hour. Fair enough. Fair enough. Carlin. So great to meet you. Thank you so much for the introduction to soul kiss elixirs. I'm really excited for your brand. I think you have a great packaging, by the way.
30:33I didn't even mention that. Thank you. Just excited to see where you go from here. Very much appreciate you guys and looking forward to sharing the magic with you when it's ready. Cheers. Good luck, Carlin. All right, on to our next guest for this episode of Elevator Talk is Robert China Berry, who is the founder of Black Beverly Hills. Robert, it's great to see you. Black Beverly Hills, Seamoss Lemonade, 92 nutrients and minerals out of the 102 that your body needs. I met you over at the Startup CPG event. Oh, my God. Everything went so well over at Expo West. Yes, that's where I met you for the first time.
31:11And I was so excited that I had an opportunity to try your products before this episode because I was blown away by what you're selling. The taste, the functionality. I mean, it's just what I needed. It was honestly one of my favorite beverages at Expo West. So great job on your formulation. Thank you. It has ionized water in it, natural spring, alkaline water, sea moss, organic lemons, organic ginger. This is the primary thing that you need for your daily life. It has everything in it that you need. Multivitamin. This is it. Let's back up for a second, Robert, because I'm curious, what inspired you to get into the beverage business and more specifically into creating a lemonade that is infused with sea moss?
32:05Okay, so I've been doing this brand, Black Beverly Hills, for over a decade. I'm based out of Southern California. I've had billboards, marketing, been doing that for over six years. So I started taking my health a lot more serious. I started taking shots of ginger from Erewhon. Little shot, 650, right? I started taking my sea moss, drinking my alkaline water. And what I realized two years ago was that I haven't been sick at all, like in over six years. Right. So I'm like, what is it? It's the alkaline water. It's the ginger. It's the sea moss. So I added in more vitamin C so that you can actually drink your sea moss.
33:01A lot of the times you go and have a shot, not a shot, but a spoonful of sea moss, right? And nobody likes to just have to do that every single day. And then also that sea moss is going to lose its nutrients by just taking that. So that's where it started at. Before we get to Chuck, he mentioned earlier that he likes to see traction in a brand that you've seen doors closed in your face, that you've heard the word no a number of times. And I imagine that's happened. But you are in a bunch of stores in Southern California. Just talk about your retail presence at this point. I'm in nearly 40 locations currently.
33:44I'm in a Vallarta supermarket that's been in there for one month so far. So they have one location, but we're moving into all the other Los Angeles locations. They have 64 stores across Southern California and also Arizona. But I'm in Bluey's Cafe, Rainbow Acres, Co-Opportunity, such great stores. As far as Southern California, we're the trendsetters for the whole rest of the United States, right? So we have a lot of traction. It's going really well. That's great to hear. I do feel like a CMOS Lemonade is right on par with what a lot of folks in SoCal are looking for. But is it something that's going to turn is the big question, right?
34:36Chuck, what are your thoughts? Yeah, I had a couple of minutes to look at his website and look at his social. And I think he's exactly where he needs to be, right? Like seeing, you can see there's hustle in this brand. Like I see all the logos on the belt, all the website, you know, like every time he's winning an account, he's throwing up a logo and being proud of it and, and, and driving it. And, you know, that's, that's the hustle you need in the early stage brands. I really appreciate the socials of him. Just, just getting online with people and getting their gut reactions, you know, you know, open a bottle and tasting it and getting some live, live responses are good.
35:11I think making it into a lemonade makes it CMOS a lot more approachable. What's it retailing at Vallarta for? Vallarta, they're doing$6.99, but the majority of the other accounts, they're at$7.99. Okay, where are you processing this? Where are you bottling this? Well, we have a co-kitchen that we're currently working out of, but we're waiting on the big distribution in order to really think about where we're going to manufacture in the future. So I figure I can run this. I'm doing self-distribution currently, 40 locations. But the manufacturing is all done by us, distribution. And I just believe that once we get that big account, like a pallet, 10 ,000 bottles, then that's when we can like start thinking about where else we're gonna like co-pack right yeah you gotta see i think you gotta start looking at that sooner rather than later um just is this is this pasteurized at all yeah any like so that so that's the hard thing about this right now this is an all organic product and we only we have a 30-day shelf life but i'm looking into doing hpp yeah but i don't want to lose any of the nutrients this is i want to stay true to to the product to the brain right so if we go hpp then the sea moss it's it's it's not it's not going to work out you guys heard of uh true true sea moss true sea moss now yeah all right so they're in sprouts they were in like a lot of the whole foods they had a big recall a couple of months ago they started pasteurizing and adding uh preservatives to their sea moss and it's a no-go like so you you but it's it's a the fda requires pasteurization right there's got to be a kill step i and dude i made this exact same mistake myself.
37:20When I started selling frozen fruit at Whole Foods, we were not pasteurizing our smoothie packs. And we thought we were great. We're like, we're telling everyone, dude, this is the fruit. This is raw. It's unpasteurized. And then the government came knocking and be like, you're not allowed to sell. And because it was a puree, you're just not allowed to sell unpasteurized juice. So adding this label on the bottom about it not being pasteurized, that doesn't cover you no you get yeah i mean you you got just be careful man like you can get away with it when you're small but like when you go to these big retailers it's you got it there's got to be a kill step in the process to sell any type of juice in and and distributors will know that too so then the only way that this can actually operate better is by going hpp yeah or which is There's a pasteurization.
38:18There's multiple types of pasteurization. There's a septic or, you know, hot heat flash or flash pasteurization, which you just raise the temp for a couple seconds and bring it down. And then the HPP is you're pressurizing it. So HPP, you're not cooking it. That's probably your, you know, you're already in plastic, so they can HPP plastic bottles. So just start looking at your cost structures, taking those in account, make sure you're getting your 40 % margin. and that's you know if you want to scale this thing that's where we got to be focused right now okay that make that makes sense i've been looking at the hpp process for a while now i just i'm just concerned with losing the nutrients i i hate pasture i was i was bummed too i was like damn i thought we had we could sell this raw but we we got slapped up for it and i would hate to see that happen to you so what do you guys think about um if once once hpp happens having 60 days it's probably going to be like more of 45 i'm thinking like that's naked juice right 45 days how does this thing get across the globe how does this work worry about southern california man you got millions and millions of dollars in opportunity in Southern California.
39:35We have gas stations, convenience stores, supermarkets. It's everywhere. As far as the CMOS beverage, nobody else is there. There's nothing else like this in Southern California. We have more accounts of the CMOS drink than anyone. Let's win in Southern California. If you win in Southern California, you're going to attract investors. You're going to attract, like, you don't have to go to New York right now. You can sell millions and millions of dollars in Southern California. That's right. And I think make sure that you're speaking to and selling in retailers that understand what CMOS is. Their consumers are looking for products like this, too.
40:18I think CMOS has got probably pretty low mainstream awareness at this point. I think in Southern California, there's certain parts of LA, there's certain parts of San Diego where CMOS is a more well-known ingredient. But Chuck, would you agree? I mean, really look for places. Start at the natural channel, right? Start at, find out who your customer is and where they are. And I would guess that they're in the air ones, they're in the mothers, lassens, jimbos, stuff like that. How important do you guys think having the USDA organic staff on there? because I'm fresh at this, but 40 stores, it's amazing, right?
40:58Right. Yeah, no, it's great. I mean, you've got to be certified. You can't put organic on your label if you're not certified by the USDA organic certification process. I think if you're selling a premium beverage in the$6.99 region, people are going to want organic. If you can get rid of organic and sell that thing for$4.99, that might be a good play too. but organic is it's the way to go like i feel like having the powerhouse of nutrients having clean ingredients it's what matters you don't want to you don't want to give your customers something that it isn't isn't good for them right yeah man that's your that's that's your brand ethos to decide and live by right so that and then and that's great great way to take paths to take.
41:50Robert, I can't believe we're out of time. I always ask our producers if we can get more time on in these episodes, but it's been so great speaking with you. And I'm really excited to continue the conversation. If you have more questions, if you want to just bounce ideas off of me, please just reach out. I'm happy to speak with you anytime. And I think Chuck might be available for a chat as well. But in the meantime, I just got to say you're making a great beverage. I really enjoyed what you, what I tried. So keep at it and definitely stay in touch. Hey, it's the world. It's the world. Yes, it is.
42:23Yes, it is, sir. We're going to the top. Like Beverly Hills, Seamoss Lemonade. Let's go. Let's go indeed. Thanks, Robert. Thanks, Robert. Cheers, buddy. All right. Great stuff. On to our next guest for this episode of Elevator Talk. We have Kim Dickinson, who is the founder of Boop. Kim, it's great to see you. Hi, Ray. Hi, Chuck. How are you guys? Hey, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you both. Nice to meet you as well. And I was wondering when we would get to protein. You know, it's protein seems to be the ingredients of the moment, maybe the last two years for sure. And you market a protein beverage or more specifically a protein shot.
43:06Tell us all about Boop. So Boop is a three ounce clear whey protein shot. It has 15 grams of protein, zero sugar. Only 70 calories. It's designed to be gone in two sips. It's just super quick, fast protein. It's really built for everyday women who are busy on the go, juggling a lot, just trying to keep up with protein, but struggling. To be honest, I'm in my 40s. I was on a GLP-1. Biggest issue was just not having an appetite and not getting enough protein, where it really mattered most as we age. So for me, shakes were just too big and heavy. I would have the bars just chew a little bit and kind of forget about it.
43:45And protein powders were just really messy and a lot of cleanup. And it just felt like it was more work than it should be. So I'm really busy working full time, building this brand and always on the go. And I thought protein shouldn't feel like a chore. So I created what I couldn't find. And instead of going bigger and heavier, I went smaller, simpler and faster. three ounces, two sips, and you're done. So Boop is designed before meals, between meals, on the go. It's light, refreshing. It's not thick, not chalky. It drinks more like a juice or a sports drink. It's intentionally tart to balance the protein taste and makes it easier to drink fast.
44:28We do currently have three flavors right now, Clementine, Redberry, and Fruit Punch. The Fruit Punch does have green tea in it, so it's a little light boost of energy. All three flavors do have B vitamins and L-carnitine. And we launched in January of this year, so we are currently direct-to-consumer, strong connections with customers right out of the gate, and learning fast and strong, good early science. So here we are. Outstanding. Kim, you have a couple varieties. I'm on your website. You have a protein shot. Do you have a protein and energy? Is that right? Yeah, so the fruit punch has green tea in it.
45:06And so it adds extra energy in there. Well, Kim, I'm like you. I love functionality in small formats. If I want turmeric, a juice shot is the perfect delivery method for me. And I think protein, if I need some protein to get 15 grams in a three-ounce shot would be the ideal way for me to consume protein as a beverage. And I think shots are an undervalued package type in our industry. Because I think, again, a lot of people are looking for functionality, but don't want 16 ounces of liquid or 20 ounces of liquid. The question has always been, how do you merchandise shots? Where do they fit inside the store?
45:46Chuck, if you were to pick up a brand like Boo, and you've worked with these shot brands, you mentioned Vive earlier. Is there a thirst? Are retail buyers looking for products like these? I mean, we love shots. Like we were the first distributor ever to put a shot on the shelf at Whole Foods. So Vive was the first shot and everyone was kind of nervous. But, you know, there was a lot of hustle in that brand and people adapted to it very quickly. And distributors love you too, because they're small, they're expensive. They don't take a lot of space on the truck. You know, the reps make a lot of money off them.
46:24So like behind the scenes, like You'll get a lot of love if you've got a shot that moves. I haven't seen too many protein shots, which is kind of surprising, but I think it's good. One question, what's the name Boop? Boop is honestly exactly what it sounds like. It's kind of like a little boop on the nose, just quick, playful, not that serious. That's really what I wanted the brand to feel like. I feel like protein today can feel really intense and very gym-focused, and so I just want it to be something more approachable and a little fun. And it makes me smile. So hopefully it makes other people smile.
47:00Fair enough. No, but to answer your question, like merchandising it, where there's all these retailers have shot sections now, right? And so everyone's kind of hip to it. You know, part of the challenges for an example for Whole Foods is they still market it in whole body. And there's not a lot of beverage space in that whole body section. So we've been able to, you know, bleed that out into the grocery sets, into the refrigerated sets. And that's kind of where it lives now. But when these things go on sale or, you know, the start of the new year, like these things fly off the shelves. Yeah. I'm really excited about it.
47:37And I, it was something that's been two years in the making and I was really hoping it wouldn't, you know, I could, I know I'm not the first to coming out with a protein shot, but there is not a lot on the market like this at all. So I was really excited. I think what you've got going for you is like authenticity, right? Like you're telling us that you've used this. This has helped you. You've been through this process and GLP one is only getting bigger. And so, you know, that market is growing. And so maybe you can, hopefully you can find your sweet spot. Absolutely. I'm on board with everything about Boop.
48:13I think it's the right product and right brand at the right time. My question is about positioning and this being a brand, as you mentioned, Kim, for female consumers. I think there's a wider audience. I think you could probably market to more folks. I mean, being hyper-focused on women, I think, is a good strategy at the outset. But do you see this as appealing to more consumers beyond year one or year two? Absolutely. And I say we do not discriminate at Boop. But I have a lot of male customers and repeat customers as well. And so it is really catching on for a lot of people because it is something that doesn't really exist for people to just grab and have.
48:57So I think that it is something that it really is catching on with a lot of people, both male and female. And price point per shot? I'm kind of working through that right now. It's challenging because when you have bundle prices and subscriptions on top of that, with bundles, it's about$388 per shot. Again, probably an appropriate price point for a functional shot. And you're selling, are you selling quite a bit online? I know you just launched in January, but how are you getting the word out online? And what are you seeing in terms of repeat rates and feedback on the brand? Yeah, so we are selling just online.
49:38I'm also going into like Orange Theories and Pilates and yogas and setting up little sampling stations to sell there. So we're selling in person as well. But yeah, it's definitely something. We have an upcoming place in New York where people will be going to New York on retail space in April. So really excited about that. Chuck, for you as a distributor, how much does the e-commerce, the digital sales revenue data impact your decision to bring a brand on to your trucks? It's not like a decision maker, but it's proof of concept, right? If people can find your website and buy this from you, there's some movement and that's like a good signaling sign.
50:29I think, you know, all retailers are looking at socials now and checking engagement to see like, does anyone care about this brand? Right. Like that does. And so if you can prove that and you've got real people, you know, clicking in and engaging and none of these bots or anything like that, or paid influencers, like people are inauthenticity, gets sniffed out pretty quickly. So I'd say like, even if, even if you're struggling on social, just like really keep it authentic. Don't like fall into temptation of like, nobody cares about followers. People care about engagement. And like, if you display that and listen, if you could say, you know, I think what's pretty cool is with selling online, if you can show that we're getting, you know, thousands, hundreds of customer orders from New York and you're selling to a retailer in New York, like, hey, these guys are paying too much for this online.
51:19They could much rather go to your stores and pick it up. Like that's, that's telling. Yeah. Yeah, well, quick plug for BevNet Live New York City in June. If you want to sell to some bodegas and get that experience of getting your brand on shelf there, not only are you going to attend a great event, you're going to have the opportunity to see your product out there in the wild and see what it takes to sell to some of these veteran and grizzled operators of bodegas across the city. Absolutely. So one other thing, Kim, is this intended to be refrigerated? I mean, can you drink the shot warm, cold?
51:55I mean, not warm, warm, but can you drink it at ambient temperature? Yeah. So what's great about it is it's shelf stable. So you, I mean, I took it with me through TSA and had it on the airplane. So you can have it. I prefer it refrigerated and cold, but you can absolutely drink it at room temperature. I mean, I think that's a huge boost for, you know, for shots because a lot of the wellness shot brands out there do need to be refrigerated. So this is a good way to get your brand on the shelf where there are places that are more available for brands that don't need to be refrigerated. Yeah. Throw it in your purse, throw it in your gym bag, and you're good.
52:34Well, Boop, once again, thank you so much, Kim, and I really appreciate the time. Please, please stay in touch. Do you want more repeat buyers on Amazon? Well, this free resource in collaboration with Straight Up Growth will help your brand turn first-time buyers into long-term subscribers. Download Winning the Repeat Purchase Game on Amazon now at Tasteradio.com slash SUG. That's Tasteradio.com slash S-U-G to start building retention-driven growth for your brand on Amazon. Scaling a beverage brand into major retail comes down to operational readiness. From packaging lead times to co-manufacturing strategy, the details can make or break a launch.
53:16In a new e-book in collaboration with Octopi and Asahi Beer USA, industry leaders share what they've learned in helping brands scale. Download it now at Tasteradio.com slash Octopi. If you're developing a cannabis beverage, formulation choices matter, especially early on. Source Technology's free guide shares practical insights on stability, dosing, and scale-ready development. Download the ins and outs of creating a cannabis beverage today at Taseradio.com slash cannabis. All right, on to our final guest for this episode of Elevator Talk. We have Garrett Quigley, who is the co-founder and CEO of Area 51 Energy.
53:59Garrett, nice to see you. Nice to meet you, Ray and Chuck. I like it. It looks like you're dialing in from like a secret location. Very on brand. Indeed. Well, I described the name of the brand as Area 51 Energy. And do you describe it that way or is it just Area 51, Garrett? I go back and forth. Sometimes I just call it Area 51. Okay. Well, we know what you sell, or at least I think we know what you sell, which is energy drinks. Tell us all about the origins of the brand and your development on the market. Yeah, so we created Area 51 to be an all-in-one energy solution. We got ingredients to support your mind, gut, and body.
54:46We really wanted to create something that, you know, when you drink it, it has all your bases covered and tastes amazing. Outstanding. And according to my notes, you launched your four course queues this month, and you're going to be in three major retailers in Texas. later this year. Can you reveal any of the retailers that you're going to be in? Yeah, so right now we're in a couple of quick trip stores doing a test there. And then we'll be launching an LSBA in the next two months or so. We just signed with a major Anheuser-Busch distributor here locally. And then we'll have a couple more announcements to come soon.
55:25Fantastic. Well, differentiation is really important. Certainly branding helps and can get your name and voice out there. But if you were to talk about the ingredients in your brand, is there something specific that really separates Area 51 from other energy drink brands? Yeah, so we have 500 milligrams of Lion's Mane. We have one gram of prebiotic fiber. We have 150 milligrams of L-theanine. And then we have some nootropics thrown in there as well. I like what you're doing. And I think that it's a tough, tough business, but I think Area 51 has some differentiation that will speak to some consumers.
56:08Chuck, you would know better than anyone. Energy is probably the toughest category. But, you know, what are your thoughts on Garrett's start here with Area 51? Yeah. Listen, I'm kind of more curious about, again, kind of what they asked one of the other entrepreneurs, like what got you here? right like what what's the inspiration behind the brand what's what's the motivation like what were you doing previously they're like i gotta go out all in on area 51 yeah so um basically my entire career i've worked um in the cpg space uh distribution sales um you know back in the day i was um you know merchandising cases of rockstar and pepsi and uh those sort of things um later at Celsius and Alani New.
56:52You know, I've just kind of grown up and seen how these companies operate and who they are. And, you know, I think what I see a lot in the category is, you know, people give themselves kind of a generic name, throw some B vitamins in and then call themselves this, you know, groundbreaking energy drink. But, you know, we know how competitive the space is. So we wanted to make something that truly, truly stands out that, you know, when you see it on the shelf you can't help but look at it and then when you pick it up uh the taste is just is is amazing so i've worked really hard at that um i firmly believe it's the the best tasting energy drink obviously i'm a little bit biased here but uh yeah we just want to make something super unique and different well i did i think that experience will serve you very well right you've already you've already got a foot ahead or whatever you want to say like you're you know what it takes to get things on the shelf.
57:45You don't have any naivety here. You know how hard that hustle is. So the fact that you're knowing all that and you've got that conviction that this is the brand, I think speaks a lot. So I think that story is helpful. I'm glad I asked. Appreciate it. Yeah, Garrett, I wonder who this might appeal to. Do you see gamers? Do you see just everyday energy drink consumers? I mean, is it for athletes? it's who's who's the your target consumer for for air 51 conspiracy conspiracy areas now there's plenty it's a growing population yeah yeah so um when we um we created this my co-founder and i we've been best friends uh since high school uh we worked at all these uh companies together we've kind of bounced around together and stuff um we've been playing video games our entire life we're huge gamers um and i think that space specifically um what we see a lot of brands do is like they call themselves gamer drink this gamer that and it's so like on the head that it kind of comes off a little bit cringy like i don't go around calling myself a gamer really unless i'm explaining it to somebody who doesn't know maybe um to me gaming is just an extension of the mainstream so if you um you know create a brand that had kind of calls back to some of those things that are popular within that space without calling it you know gamer fuel or whatever it is um you know i think people really resonate with it but we really try to marry kind of all of our favorite things like gaming energy drinks uh fitness a little bit of the conspiracy theory stuff in a little bit of a tongue-in-cheek way um you'll kind of see with our next flavor launch that'll kind of come to a head and make a lot more sense um super unique ideas there um yeah we're having fun with it i mean i gotta ask you about impressive numbers on your we funder um campaign right now.
59:37It looks like you've raised close to over$300 ,000 and I'm only 50 investors. Like that says a lot that you've got 50 people willing to throw down five,$6 ,000. Is that purely organic? Yeah. So the feedback on that has been amazing. That's purely from our community. So we haven't thrown a lot of money into ads or anything like that. That's just been from people seeing the brand. A lot of them haven't even tried it themselves. They just think it's really cool. So yeah, their fundraise is going really well. If you want to check it out, it's wefunder.com slash area51energy. But yeah. I mean, I think that's really impressive.
1:00:23I mean, how many of those 50 people have you even tasted it? Maybe like 10 of them, honestly. Yeah. So that's, I mean, that, that says a lot to your marketing ability. One thing I would, you know, I took a couple of minutes on the brand. One thing I think your website lacked is like the founder story, right? Like there's, you know, there's nothing really of where this brand came from. And I think early stage people want transparency. They want to know that AI didn't create this brand, that there's a real human behind it. And so that's my only comment on the marketing. Yeah, I appreciate it. I mean, it feels like there was a time when no one could crack the energy code and it was just Monster and Red Bull and Rockstar sprinkled in there.
1:01:13But we've seen the emergence of certainly Celsius, Alani Nu, Ghost, C4. And I think there is room for another brand like this. But what's going to get there? I mean, what does it take to really create the next great energy drink brand. I think brand, and I think certainly capital is going to be a huge part of that. But Chuck, in your opinion, what else, what is another component that's going to be required of Garrett and his team to get to that level of interest and awareness among mainstream consumers? If you're lucky, this thing can go viral on social media where you can save a lot of marketing bucks.
1:01:50But if not, you're going to have to have some capital behind you. Yeah. And I think you bring up a good point. That's no secret. Yeah. I mean, I think virality can go a long way in terms of getting your name out there. I mean, I was on your Instagram page, Garrett, and I saw this interesting mix of sort of gamer lifestyle, but also just, you know, I think Gen Z lifestyle kind of as well. I mean, what's really hitting with consumers? What's really hitting with your social audience? Yeah, I mean, honestly, today our social media is myself and our accountant doing some stuff, just making funny videos, doing some cool edits.
1:02:30We work with a lot of like VFX artists and stuff that do some really cool art for us. So it's been it's kind of a mixture. But I would say like from a virality standpoint, people really like those, you know, sort of skit type videos that we've done here and there. I gotta check out the Insta now I'm curious yeah it's Instagram drinkarea51 is the handle and I think is that you said it's your accountant? yeah it's my accountant and my girlfriend so she has a few jobs there we're gonna have to dub in and girlfriend at the beginning of when you mentioned that because I was just gonna be very happy that you just referred as your accountant no in all seriousness I mean I think you're right I think the behind the scenes content and Chuck references earlier, you know, building a brand and what it takes and people want to see, you know, all the heartbreak and the heartache and the hustle that goes into building this brand.
1:03:29But I think he's 100 percent right, especially when it comes to the WeFunder. About the founder story and your backgrounds and the fact that you have been in the energy business, I think, is goes a long way to give you credibility that, you know, this category and that you can you can build upon this category. And in fact, some of the folks that have invested in your business have referenced the fact that you have experience and that you're hardworking folks, you and your co-founder. So I would agree on that front. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. Garrett, I'm so excited that we had this opportunity to meet you.
1:04:02Thank you so much for the time. Thanks for sending samples to our office, by the way. I'm really looking forward to trying it. Yeah, I'll have to get your feedback on them. Yeah, we'll talk about it in an upcoming episode of Taste Radio. Stay tuned for that. and maybe we'll do some conspiracy discussion as well. Yeah, let's go. Let's do it. I'm ready. All right, Garrett. Thank you so much again for joining us on Elevator Talk. It was great talking to Ray, Chuck. Hopefully I'll see you guys at BedNet Live. Absolutely. Well, Chuck, another great episode of Elevator Talk. I think we saw a really nice mix of different brands that are competing in different categories.
1:04:38And I think the through line to everything was innovation, whether it be in terms of ingredients or packaging or just format. Again, you just think about a protein shot, and we haven't seen many of those out there. So I'm really excited. Every time we do this show, it feels like I'm really hopeful for the future of this industry and what new founders are bringing to it. Yeah, huge variations of founders and kind of even early stage differences. And yeah, it'd be cool to just look back in a year, set a calendar reminder for a year and see where these brands are. Yeah, well, hopefully these brands will be in touch with you sooner than that.
1:05:20And I have a feeling folks in our audience are going to want to get in touch with you and Zara pretty soon. For folks who do want to reach out to you in high touch, what's the best way to do? Just contact at High Touch DSD. We answer every single email that goes into it. If you want to be proactive, you can ship samples to our warehouse in Santa Ana. Just Google search high-touch libations. We're in Santa Ana. And if you ship samples and then follow up with a contact email, we'll follow up a call. We usually like to try the product first before setting up a call. So if you contact us on the email, we're just going to tell you to ship samples anyway.
1:05:57So we will review everything that comes through our door. You are good people for doing so. So one more time on that email address? Contact at hightouchdst.com. H-I-T-O-U-C-H-D-S-D.com. Chuck, I know how busy you are and we're over time. We started a little late. You are a gentleman and scholar and you're a very generous contributor and member of this beverage industry. Thank you so much for all you do. And thanks so much for being with us on Elevator Talks. I sincerely appreciate it. Thank you so much, Ray. Always fun. See you soon. Thank you. And thank you once again to our amazing founders who joined us today.
1:06:38Thanks for everyone listening or watching. And thanks for our amazing team at BevNetNosh and Taste Radio. The best in the business. Signing off for everyone. I'm Ray Lateef, and we'll talk to you next time.
