The vast majority of shoppers (82%) can’t match influencers to the brands they own, according to a new report from Numerator— but that’s not discouraging influencer or celebrity brands from trying. One BevAlc company, co-helmed by the founder of hydration drink brand Roar Organics, is even building its business model around quickly bringing influencer brands to market.
It’s a big bet for Pink Reef, the parent company of ready-to-drink Chido Premium Tequila Cocktails, which introduced this week its first product created specifically for a team of influencers. Bob Does Sports, a golf entertainment brand, is now adding a line of canned tequila cocktails called Have A Day to its ecosystem of social content, a podcast, merchandise, and events.
The RTDs are somewhat modeled after influencers Nelk Boys’ Happy Dad seltzers and aimed at a very specific online fanbase.
“We saw the opportunity with subsets of people that are highly engaged and Happy Dad was a great example,” said Brent Wetmore, vice president of national accounts and business development, whose resume includes SABMiller, Boston Beer and Stone Brewing.
The Florida-based company is the brainchild of serial entrepreneur Alexander Melillo and Roar Organics founder Roly Nesi, who teamed up in 2021 to launch Chido’s, a 5% ABV four-SKU tequila cocktail with its key markets in Florida and New York.
“We felt like we could create a product that really led with the liquid first but also put out branding that played more to modern day marketing efforts,” said Melillo.
Since its debut, Chido has aligned with beer wholesalers, specifically a partnership with Reyes Beverage in Florida and the brand’s expansion markets in California and Arizona next year.
But the vision for Pink Reef shifted in 2023: while still pushing Chido, the company pivoted towards partnerships where its sales and marketing functions could be leveraged to rapidly bring new influencer-based brands to market. The concept is aimed at brands taking advantage of opportunities like the YouTube star-backed Prime, but in the BevAlc space and without a superstar celebrity, said Wetmore.
Have a Day is built around the approaching six million-strong reach across social platforms of the Bob Does Sports group made up by Robby Berger, Joey Coldcuts, and Fat Perez. In the past year, the trio has launched a seven-figure merch line, Breezy Golf; golf tournaments throughout the U.S.; and hosted a Breezy Lounge in Five Iron Golf in New York City.
Working with an influencer partnership gives the RTD line a known audience— in this case 88% male, 84% skewing legal drinking age, and high earners. Breezy Golf, which does $100,000 per day in sales when the influencers announce new drops, shows that there’s a fanbase interested in spending on their products, according to Wetmore.
The company’s home base of Florida will launch as the hub, with a heatmap of the Bob Does Sports engagement serving as the next distribution roadmap. Direct-to-consumer shipping will serve to onboard hardcore fans over the next few months, with retail to launch soon after.
While some celebrity-backed ventures have proven staying power, influencer brands may face the challenge of constant consumer acquisition to mitigate the amount of trial in a nascent category. Bob Does Sports has already begun cross-pollinating with other influencers and brands to extend its following. From a lifecycle perspective, Wetmore said the company views Have A Day as having a 36 to 72 months cycle at a minimum. Pink Reef has other partnerships in the stable too.
It’s not the first company to trial influencer-backed brands in RTDs. In 2022, entertainment company Betches launched Faux Pas, a canned cocktail co-created in partnership with Spirit of Gallo which seems to have had a short run — the brand hasn’t posted on Instagram since last August. Lifestyle social media influencer and content creator Krista Horton also got into the beverage game this year with her own coconut rum-based canned cocktails, but it’s too early to tell how successful that launch may be. Other RTDs have also bet on finding inroads via the golf lifestyle.
As for building a suite of brands that offer similar liquid and convenience propositions, Wetmore argues that each brand lives “in their own little cohesive ecosystem.”
That may make sense from a marketing perspective, and help initially drive traffic to retailers, but how that translates to consumers making a decision in store may be a challenge. Only 32% of influencer brand shoppers knew the brand had an affiliation with a public figure when purchasing, according to a recently released Numerator report.
But Pink Reef sees the opportunity for a tequila RTD challenger in flavor and brand authenticity, and is aiming for its RTDs to attract those consumers who enter into tequila RTDs through leading brands such as White Claw. Have a Day’s Georgia Peach and Watermelon Wave come in at the same ABV level as Chido, and slightly over the $20 price per 8-pack, which also sits in the same bracket as leader High Noon.
“We see the opportunity as people coming into those brands and coming over to us afterwards,” Wetmore said.