Beverage Startups
America’s First Sparkling Beverage Made With Squeezed Fruit
Source: Spindrift
Could you tell us about the beginning of your beverage business? When was it established? Did you have any experience in the beverage industry before this project?
In 2009, I began creating my own sparkling beverages to help kick a bad Diet Coke habit. I wanted something refreshing, made with real ingredients I could understand and feel good about drinking. I also wanted something I could feel good about sharing with my kids. After much trial and error I achieved this by combining simple fresh ingredients: real fruit and triple-filtered sparkling water.
Prior to starting Spindrift, I founded a line of all natural cocktail mixers called Stirrings, which was acquired by Diageo. I’ve always been a beverage guy with a fascination and passion for the industry.
What is the meaning behind your company‘s name?
The word Spindrift means the whitewash of a breaking wave, which, to me, is the perfect symbol of real refreshment and also harkens back to my days working on charter fishing boats off Nantucket Island in Massachusetts.
Owner Bill Creelman Source: Spindrift
Spindrift uses real fruit from real farmers. Could you share your story of how you managed to set up your network of suppliers? What kind of difficulties did you face, if any?
Real is at the core of who and what we are at Spindrift. I can point to the bush where our berries are picked and the tree where the lemons are grown. One of the biggest challenges I faced when starting Spindrift was identifying and fostering relationships with the right farmers. I spent a lot of time researching and meeting with small family farms throughout the country – really getting to know them and getting them excited about what we’re doing.
At Spindrift, we’re committed to using the freshest ingredients for our beverages and that’s why all our fruit is picked and then bottled as quickly as possible. The primary implication of this is that we have to follow the season and shift our sources based on the time of year. So when we were establishing our supply network, we had to find multiple farms to source a single ingredient at different points in the cycle, rather than using just one.
Spindrift is America’s first and only line of unsweetened sparkling beverages made with real squeezed fruit. Was it hard to develop such a product?
It proved incredibly difficult to produce a sparkling beverage with real, fresh fruit and without any preservatives or additives. I spent several years testing recipes and working with manufacturers to refine the process. Every day there was another issue to resolve. It was lots of trial and error. Controlling the quality and taste has been an uphill battle, but one that has always been worth the fight. We never cut corners – we find solutions and adapt to ensure our product is as real and true to the fruit as possible.
How many flavors are there to choose from? Which one would you say is your favorite one? Will you expand your variety of drinks to choose from?
We offer seven sparkling beverages – Grapefruit, Blackberry, Cranberry Raspberry, Orange Mango, Lemonade, Half & Half (half iced tea, half lemonade), and Ginger Beer, and six sparkling waters – Grapefruit, Blackberry, Cucumber, Lemon, Raspberry Lime, and Watermelon. The sparkling waters are our favorite for every day, all day drinking, and we reserve the sparkling beverages as treats with meals. We definitely plan to expand our variety of drinks and are launching a new Orange Mango sparkling water later this year.
Source: Spindrift
Your company has given 1% of our sales to environmental organizations. Why is commitment to supporting a healthy natural environment important to you?
Since the beginning, we have given 1% of our sales to environmental organizations as members of 1% for the Planet – a network of businesses committed to supporting a healthy natural environment. We consider it a core tenet of our business – our product wouldn’t exist without nature.
Where do you see Spindrift in 5 years from now?
I see us really owning “real” and continuing to disrupt the category with new ideas and stories to tell.
For more information visit Spindrift website.
