The Challenge: Two friends, who favored mixing carbonated water with their overly sweet fruit juice, decided to take their “invention” into mass production creating a healthy carbonated beverage for children and adults. With a background in beverage manufacturing through a family owned business and capital investing, the two were a perfect mix with a familiar path to plow. However, manufacturing a beverage and partnering with the most appropriate distributor and/or retailer presents a new set of challenges. How do you secure a partnership with a distributor that provides beverages to the largest natural beverage retailer in the U.S. when no one’s heard of you? The distributor won’t sign a contract until the beverage becomes more popular, and they beverage isn’t becoming more “popular’ because it isn’t available at many retail outlets.

The Solution: Capitalizing on Izze’s eye-catching identity, TONIC compiled information and created a comprehensive and flavorful media kit. The media kit acted as a comprehensive set of tools that could be utilized for communication with 1-the media, 2-distributor, and 3-a retailer. Next, TONIC created a guerrilla public relations campaign targeting the Natural Products Expo West in Los Angeles, and a secondary target: women’s consumer publications focusing on health. During the 3-day Natural Products Expo TONIC stealthy placed 6-packs of IZZE in the media room, meeting rooms, and high traffic areas. TONIC scheduled meeting with beverage industry and health-focused consumer publications.

Press Kit (print and digital format)

• Intro press release
• Company History
• Executive bios with an effervescent and humorous angle
• Company history
• FAQ
• Product information
• Product testimonials
• Nutrition insights:
  Consumption of Food Groups-Perception Vs. Reality
  • Is Intake of Added Sugars Associated with Diet Quality?
  • Report Card on the Quality of Americans’ Diets

Photo Shoot (with nationally renowned photojournalist and magazine photo editor)

• Izze Executive Team
• Product

The Result: Over the course of 6 months, IZZE secured six distributor contracts covering the U.S., including distribution into Whole Foods Markets. Industry publications picked up the IZZE story as well as consumer publications including Beverage World, Organic Products Retailer, Conscious Choice, Taste for Life, GreatLife, Energy Times, Boulder County Business Report, Better Nutrition, Body & Soul, Denver’s 5280, Modern Bride and three articles in the Daily Camera.