C-store beverage sales proved strong in Q2 but retailers are feeling mixed about the coming months, according to Goldman Sachs Equity Research’s latest Beverage Bytes report. The quarterly survey, which received responses from retailers representing about 24% of the convenience channel, said retailers are now projecting around 6% total sales growth for 2023, up from 5% in the prior report. However, fears of a possible recession persist.

• Total convenience beverage sales were up 6.6% in Q2, compared to 4.5% growth in Q1.
• While brands continued to see sharp year-over-year price increases throughout Q2, retailers felt that the pricing environment “remains healthy/rational” with a majority expecting more incremental increases later this year.
• Energy drinks are the “big winners” of incremental shelf and cooler space and 36% of retailers said they plan to allocate more to the category. Celsius, Monster and C4 led the category for the largest increases. Monster’s new alcoholic play, The Beast Unleashed, is also adding facings.
• Energy drink dollar sales were up 13% in Q2, a deceleration from 19% in Q1.
• Overall, retailers believe the energy category is on track for its third consecutive double-digit growth year in 2023, but projections have lowered to ~12%, compared to ~19% in Q1. 
• The strong performance of innovations like Monster Energy Zero Sugar is leaving many feeling bullish, however. Just over half of the respondents said sales of that product have been “very strong,” while 33% said sales are incremental to the Monster brand.
• Out-of-stocks have continued to be an issue for all categories, but the situation for non-alc beverages has gotten “incrementally better,” as 40% of retailers reported no NA out-of-stocks at all – the first time in two years any retailer has said they’ve been fully stocked. However, shortages of alcoholic drinks have worsened.
• Retailers can’t seem to shake the feeling that it might all come apart. Despite the higher annual growth projection, respondents were 47% more negative about the state of the beverage category over the last 1-2 months, compared to 30% in Q1. They cited economic pressures and fear of recession, strengthening elasticities, cooler weather, and the continued impacts from the anti-transgender boycott of Bud Light.
• However, 16% of respondents were more positive in their outlook, particularly on the back of the energy drink boom.

European consumers were years ahead of the U.S. when it came to embracing non-alcoholic alternatives. Now, through a new import program from growing NA beverage retailer Boisson, some of those brands that sober curious Brits and Germans have embraced will be making their debut in America.

• Boisson announced this week it will begin importing NA products from Europe and the U.K., beginning with Berlin-based Kolonne Null, a premium wine brand founded in 2018. Boisson will carry its entire line, according to a press release.
• Launched in 2021 in New York, Boisson now operates 10 retail locations nationwide and also sells beverages to bars and restaurants and operates an online direct-to-consumer site. The company raised a $12 million seed round last year.
• "The United States launch marks an exciting chapter for Kolonne Null because it is one of the world's most important markets for non-alcoholic wines where our premium versions cannot be missing,” brand founder Philipp Roessle said in a statement.
• Earlier this year Boisson partnered with alcohol delivery platform Drizly to service the markets where it has a brick-and-mortar presence. Boisson reported at the time that in-store sales were up nearly 5x in 2022, while online sales grew almost tenfold.

Richard Laver has been through what could be colloquially referred to as a lot. The entrepreneur founded medical-grade, plant-based meal shake brand Kate Farms after his daughter Kate was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth. He has also experienced homelessness and, in 1985 at the age of 12, he was the youngest survivor of a commercial plane crash that killed his father and 136 others.

It’s Laver’s remarkable good fortune to come out of tragedy that inspired the name of his latest brand: an energy drink called LUCKY F*CK. Yeah.

• LUCKY F*CK is a better-for-you energy brand made with maca and beta-alanine and contains zero sugar.
• The line is set to launch on August 2, the 38th anniversary of the crash of Delta Airlines Flight 191.
• The energy category is renowned for inviting… let’s say “unusual” brand names: Shark Stimulation, Zombie Blood Energy Potion, Cocaine (now back on the market, by the way).
• There is a difference here. While the name LUCKY F*CK may be a big bet, and certainly designed to raise eyebrows, there looks to be a real lived earnestness and aspirational quality to it. We’re eager to find out if consumers will pick up on that message come launch.

Check back next week when we’ll be talking with Laver and learning more about the brand.

A new plant-based beverage brand called Bayjoo is bringing “tree bark brew” to the market. The three-SKU line, sold in 12 oz. cans, is a modern, zero sugar take on a traditional Caribbean fermented drink known as mabí (or mauby). The question now is whether the startup brand will be able to educate consumers on its unique positioning.

Read the full review on BevNET.

Craft kombucha maker Better Booch has made its first foray into the RTD tea space with the release of Cha, a line of sparkling teas with gut-supporting prebiotics. Available in four flavors at launch – Hibiscus Ginger Lime, Tropical Green Tea, Tangerine White Tea and Yerba Maté Berry – each 12 oz. can has just 10 calories and is boosted with prebiotic agave inulin.

• All four varieties are currently available for purchase on the Better Booch website for $36 per single flavor 12-pack.
• “Our team has been tirelessly working [on] these flavors. We’re confident these will redefine the way you enjoy the tea blends you already know and love,” the brand wrote in an Instagram post.

Gay Water, a colorful new RTD vodka soda brand, has launched this week following a Pride season in which major companies wavered on their LGBTQ+ inclusive campaigns. 

• The brand joins Supergay Spirits as an LGBTQ-founded brand wearing their identity on the label.
• In an environment where LGBTQ+ people may have felt abandoned by mainstream brands giving in to homophobic backlash, Gay Water is banking on its authenticity and selling to a demographic with growing financial power.

Read the story on BevNET.

Specialty coffee and tea brand BLK & Bold has announced a deal with Aramark Refreshments to make its lineup of hot and cold coffee products available to all Aramark clients this year, spanning office spaces, car dealerships and more. 

• The move comes as part of Aramark’s commitment to “building its portfolio of diverse suppliers in the refreshments space and expanding its values, beyond the cup,” according to a press release.
• Founded in 2018, BLK & Bold is the first nationally distributed Black-owned coffee and tea company in the U.S., selling its whole and ground beans and RTD cold brews in over 11,000 retail stores.
• The news comes after BLK & Bold last year made its first foray into the RTD space with the launch of a cold brew coffee line.
• In Case You Missed It: Read our review of BLK & Bold’s RTDs from earlier this week on BevNET.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s ZOA Energy announced this week a new name, image, likeness (NIL) campaign. Called “The Rock’s Warriors,” the annual program secured deals with seven college athletes selected by Johnson for “their optimism, enthusiasm and commitment to striving for something bigger.”

• The inaugural class includes Angel Reese (basketball, Louisiana State University), Hansel Enmanuel (basketball, Austin Peay State University), Brock Bowers (football, University of Georgia), Marvin Harrison Jr. (football, Ohio State University), Drake Maye (football, University of North Carolina), Kam Kinchens (football, University of Miami) and Amaya Gainer (softball, Florida A&M). 
• As part of the partnership, “The Rock’s Warriors” will lead an upcoming marketing campaign for ZOA and create content across social media platforms. 
• The athletes will also support national and regional retail partnerships and philanthropic events across the country on behalf of the energy drink brand.
• Our editor-in-chief and diehard Bulldogs fan Jeff Klineman has requested it be on that record that he approves of the selection and thinks they could not do better than Brock Bowers.