Manna Beverages & Ventures (MB&V) struck a claim as a major player in U.S. beverage manufacturing yesterday.

The company announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire California-based co-packer Nor-Cal Beverage Company, a deal that adds another powerful piece to the Kentucky-based business group’s growing CPG ambitions.

MB&V is an affiliate of Manna Capital Partners, an investment firm founded by Kevin Attkisson and business magnate and former Milwaukee Bucks player Ulysses L. “Junior” Bridgeman. Once the deal closes, Nor-Cal will mark the second manufacturer in MB&V’s portfolio and its first operating facility; the company, last year, announced it had begun construction on a 1.7 million square-foot plant in Montgomery, Alabama which is expected to go online in 2025.

Bridgeman, who owns several successful businesses including a wide set of franchise restaurants, also founded Midwestern bottler Heartland Coca-Cola. Speaking with BevNET this morning, however, MB&V president Derrick Register was quick to clarify that the bottler is a separate company from the portfolio MB&V is now building. 

At Nor-Cal Beverage, an 86-year-old family-owned co-packer with two locations, Register said it will be business as usual for the foreseeable future. The current owners will remain active in the day-to-day business – “They have a history of success,” Register said – and at least from day one there will be no significant changes to the way the co-packer is run. For MB&V, he said Nor-Cal represents a “customer-centric” addition to its portfolio.

Nor-Cal has a long history of working with both large beverage brands and entrepreneurs; late last decade it built an extra facility geared toward focusing line time on emerging beverage companies.

Register was light on details about MB&V’s future plans, beyond the company’s stated goal of becoming “the leading total beverage supply chain company,” but said it is taking both a regional and national approach to building out its co-packing portfolio. Nor-Cal, as the largest beverage co-packer in the Western U.S., gives it a very significant property in California, while Alabama will cover the Southeast. How quickly MB&V intends to expand beyond those regions remains to be seen.

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As the momentum behind zero-proof drinks shows no signs of abating, leading non-alc retailer Boisson is taking steps to secure its place within the expanding category, bringing on a new CEO and announcing today that it has received $5 million in funding via a bridge round led by Convivialité Ventures, the VC arm of Pernod Ricard, and Connect Ventures.

🏠 The funding also brings in a new CEO: Sheetal Aiyer, a former executive in startups and growth phase CPG companies.

📈 For founder Nick Bodkins, the next stage of growth is continuing to build a “verticalized approach to the market” internationally and to leverage Boisson’s flexibility outside of the three-tier system to continue to sell direct to consumers, into bars and restaurants, and specialty grocery.

🛒 The CEO is skeptical, however, on the rush to grocery by “factions within the category.”

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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 17 states have lodged an antitrust suit against Amazon alleging the ecommerce giant abused its powers to overcharge its customers and degrade the services it provides them while also stifling competition, harming both shoppers and sellers alike.

🗒️ The 172-page suit, filed Tuesday in a federal court in Washington state, follows a yearslong investigation into the company’s business. The FTC and the 17 states that filed the complaint are seeking a permanent injunction that would put an end to Amazon’s unlawful conduct and “restore the lost promise of competition.” 

🎙️ “In a competitive world, Amazon’s decision to raise prices and degrade services would create an opening for rivals and potential rivals to attract business, gain momentum and grow. But Amazon has engaged in an unlawful monopolistic strategy to close off that possibility,” the complaint reads, drawing a withering response from the ecommerce giant’s attorneys. 

💵 Amazon’s pricing practices are also the target of a suit from the California attorney general’s office alleging the policies violate state law, as reported by Law360. The D.C. attorney general’s office is currently working to bring back a similar case over pricing policies under its local laws.

Having introduced Flash I.V.  earlier this year to compete in the red-hot rapid hydration subset – albeit a few years after its chief rival – BodyArmor is bringing the line into an equally on-trend format: powder sticks. The zero-sugar Flash I.V. Hydration Boosters have a 220mg dose of electrolytes with zinc, vitamins B and C, for on-the-go rapid rehydration and are available in 6-count or 12-count boxes in five flavors: Tropical Punch, Cucumber Lime, Grape, Strawberry Kiwi and Lemon Lime.

📊 The new line opens BodyArmor up to the nearly $700 million U.S. market for sports drink mixes. Significantly smaller than liquid sports drink (about $10.7 billion), the powdered mix category sales were up 48% YoY compared to drinks which were only up 8.4%, according to Circana data from August.

⛷️ Powders, specifically single-use sticks, have become an increasingly popular convenience-oriented line extension for next-gen sports hydration products like PRIME, Electrolit and Vita Coco, building on category momentum established by Liquid I.V. (now making a bid for kids), Cure, nuun, Hydrant and other powder-exclusive brands.

📉 The Coca-Cola-owned brand will be hoping its new innovation can help reverse negative trends in dollar sales for the company’s sports drink portfolio.

Dive Deeper: Active Adaptation: Sports Drink Category Evolves To Meet New Consumers

The memory of the king of blues lives on via a new bourbon and whiskey line developed by Heritage Distilling Company, the B.B. King Estate announced on Tuesday. 

In honor of the guitar legend’s 98th birthday the King estate also announced two new B.B. King branded guitars from Gibson, an upcoming biopic film and documentary, and a new album featuring the blues master’s music mixed in with contemporary artists.

🤝🏼 The line marks the first celebrity partnership for Heritage, which has been focused on building a network of Tribal-owned distilleries.  

🛍️ The B.B. King Music Company is currently expanding the B.B. King brand into many new consumer products, according to a press release.

👑 The King-branded spirits are a rarity in artist-backed spirit brands, which tend to rely on active entertainment figure’s social media presence and marketing pull. How will a legacy translate into sales?

Distill Ventures, the Diageo-backed independent drinks accelerator, is positioning itself for growth in North America with several new leadership hires. 

Following Heid Dillon’s appointment as CEO in May, the drinks accelerator today announced a handful of key appointments within North America focused on ensuring the company is well-positioned to support its growing portfolio of founders. 

🙋🏼‍♂️ Appointments include Justin Lew as managing director of North America, Evis Savvides  as president of North America Commercial and Jennie Leuzarder as portfolio director. 

📍 Lew and Savvides have been with the accelerator since 2020 and 2019 respectively, and Leuzarder brings experience in roles including sales, trade advocacy, branding and strategy on behalf of companies such as Diageo, Pernod Ricard, and LVMH. 

💰 Since its founding in 2013, Distill Ventures has invested more than $300M into 39 brands. In April, the pre-accelerator announced the latest five brands to join its cohort.

After starting his career from behind the bar on Cheers, actor Woody Harrelson is coming full circle (in a way) as the new co-founder of Holistic Spirits Co., alongside wellness entrepreneur Amy Holmwood.

🆕  The company’s first two expressions include Origen, a specialty vodka, and Harmony Gin. Both spirits are distilled using sustainable initiatives and green distilling techniques, according to a press release, and feature all-natural and botanical ingredients, as they are infused with a blend of artichoke leaves, elderberries, green tea leaves and muscadine grapes (indigenous only to the American South). 

🌱 In addition, Harmony Gin also includes juniper berries, coriander seed, hyssop, lemon peel, lime peel, angelica root and orris root. 

🛍️ Origen Holistic Spirits (37%) ABV is available for a SRP of $39.99-$45.99 per 750ml bottle while Harmony Gin (45%) ABV is available for $40.99-$46.99 at select retailers across California, Washington, D.C., Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York and South Carolina.

Brooks Addington, the CEO of sparkling alcohol-alternative brand TÖST, spoke about why the brand’s positioning has resonated with all types of consumers, why having few competitors is “a double-edged sword,” the importance of an affordable price point and a frugal marketing strategy, and the company’s strategic partnership with Constellation Brands.

Listen to the full episode on BevNET

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