The Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association (ANBA) believes the emerging category deserves more attention from grocery retailers and distributors, and they came to Expo East armed with the data that they say proves it. Off-premise sales for non-alc beverages were nearly $510 million in the last 52-week period ending July 29, up 31.2% versus a year ago, according to NielsenIQ data provided to ANBA. In terms of channel share, 61% of total dollars came from food; yet, the largest channel gains were in drug stores (+53.2% YoY) thanks to CVS dedicating a whole set to NA beverage options. The persistent question of how to best merchandise this disruptive category at retail was the subject of a hosted discussion on Thursday, during which Mingle Mocktails founder Laura Taylor offered up her company’s CVS partnership as a case study for how the category can work together to “raise all ships.” Mingle and other brands chosen for CVS distribution came together “as friends,” she said, to build shelf-talkers and in-store signage that helped educate and draw consumers to the NA section. Also on the panel was Kul Mocks founder Danielle Gross, who praised ANBA’s ability to harness the movement’s collective energy: “Cohesively we're all aligned as [ANBA] members, we know what we're trying to build to support the retail side of things as the demand grows. But growing the category mindfully is what we can control as suppliers.” Much of the hard work thus far has been done by curators and specialists: next-gen non-alc-only retailers like Boisson, Sèchey and No&Low, among others. But buy-in from grocery stores is what’s most needed to help the category grow right now; that’s the refrain heard throughout the show floor and in Expo East’s ANBA-sponsored NA Pavilion. Multiple brands were optimistic in sharing that apparently Walmart and Target are both dedicating category managers to zero-proof beverages and would be expanding their NA sets to bring more brands into the store. While individual brands fight for shelf gains, ANBA’s top priority as a group is bringing NA options to where alcohol is sold. About 94% of NA buyers are also purchasing alcoholic beer, wine and spirits so for the category to reach its full potential it needs to be seen in the same places alcohol is sold. “What we’re pushing for is just to drive awareness,” Salazar told BevNET. “The category works better when we are in a set together.” PLUS: 🫖 For Just Ice Tea, it’s as much about what the brand is focusing on – a new 3-SKU line of lightly sweetened teas in 12 oz. cans set to retail for $1.99 each and $7.99 per 4-pack – as what it’s not. While the cans provide fast-rising Just Ice Tea with a “democratized” budget-friendly alternative to its premium-priced glass bottle core line, parent company Eat the Change’s other products are being reshuffled or, in the case of mushroom jerky, being quietly phased out. We talked with founder Seth Goldman about Just’s increasingly important place (90% of total business) in Eat the Change’s shifting portfolio. 🚚 Yesly CEO Scott Miller is pulling from the playbook of his days running Snapple and Essentia: the functional water brand is racking up distribution wins through regional DSDs while eyeing mainstream retailers, starting with a forthcoming trial in Target. At 20 partners and growing, the vitamin-enhanced functional water is aiming to have around 200 DSDs on board in the next 24 months. We caught up with Miller to talk about brand fundamentals and future plans. Read our full Expo East dispatch on BevNET | 
