BOSTON — Night Shift Distributing proudly announces a partnership with Loverboy, a new line of naturally sweetened, gluten-free sparkling hard teas, introducing the brand in Massachusetts following its release to the New York market in July 2019.
Loverboy, founded by entrepreneur and reality TV Star Kyle Cooke – best known for BRAVO TV’s Summer House – is the first sparkling hard tea on the market. Cooke created the brand with Co-Star and fiancé Amanda Batula, integrating the startup journey into the reality show.
Loverboy provides a hard seltzer-like product, but with higher quality ingredients and the familiar flavor of an iced tea. The craft beverage is gluten-free and keto-friendly, contains zero sugars or artificial flavors, and features a perfect balance of organic brewed tea, botanicals, and monk fruit. As consumer demand for health-conscious beverages grows, Loverboy ensures a refreshing guilt-free sipping experience in three (3) varieties: White Tea Peach, Hibiscus Pom and Lemon Iced Tea. With only 90 calories 0g sugar and 4.2 % ABV per can, drinkers can sip Loverboy all day (and night) with no regrets.
“In recent years, there has been more pressure than ever to deliver quality food and beverage experiences that simultaneously please the health-conscious consumer and cater to those with dietary goals and restrictions,” explains Kyle Cooke, Founder of Loverboy. “Before the introduction of hard seltzer, the alcohol industry was relatively behind in satisfying demand for those seeking a ‘better-for-you’ drink. Loverboy relieves this pent-up consumer demand with a lightly carbonated hard tea that won’t weigh you down – literally and figuratively.”
As a Manchester, MA native and MBA graduate of Babson College, Cooke is thrilled to expand Loverboy’s presence to his home market. Like Night Shift, Loverboy is a brand built on family, friendship and entrepreneurial spirit. Summer House Co-Star and fiancé Amanda Batula serves as the brand’s Creative Director, designing Loverboy’s packaging as an extension of Kyle’s personality: colorful, social and playful in nature. In Season 4 of Summer House, Co-Star Carl Radke joins the team to spearhead brand partnerships and sales.
The partnership between Loverboy and Night Shift started when Night Shift Co-Founder & President Rob Burns slid into Cooke’s direct messages on Instagram upon learning about Loverboy on the latest season of Summer House.
“At Night Shift, we always keep an eye out for emerging beverage brands, alcoholic or non-alcoholic, that could benefit from our relationships in the market,” says Burns. “We understand the struggles firsthand of building a brand from the ground up, and part of Night Shift’s mission is to make the transition from entrepreneur to successful business owner easier for like-minded beverage brands.”
With the help of Night Shift, Loverboy is currently on shelves and behind the bar at 32 locations across Massachusetts. Outside of MA, Loverboy can be found at more than 65 locations in New York and South Florida, including retailers such as Whole Foods and popular bars such as The Ainsworth, Houston Hall, Grey Lady, and more.
Burns and Co-Founders Mike O’Mara and Michael Oxton started Night Shift Distributing in 2016 as a result of their desire to operate outside of the state’s archaic beverage distribution laws. With Night Shift Distributing, Night Shift circumvents state-wide franchise laws requiring lifetime contracts between suppliers and distributors. While laws such as these were put in place to protect distributors against suppliers, Night Shift believes in the power of protecting suppliers against distributors to create success.
Burns is also the President of the Massachusetts Brewers Guild, where he devotes his spare time to providing budding brewers and beverage founders with the resources needed to be successful and maintain that success long-term, as well as lobbying for political change as it relates to beverage laws.
“Burns and his team at Night Shift are an integral part of introducing our bespoke sparkling hard tea to Massachusetts and helping Loverboy become a household name and fridge staple year-round,” continues Cooke. “It is refreshing to work with a distribution partner that cares equally about the success and growth of Loverboy as they do their own beverage line at Night Shift Brewing.”
Night Shift partners with a variety of additional beer, cider, wine, spirits and non-alcoholic beverages to distribute product across Massachusetts. A full list can be seen here.
ABOUT NIGHT SHIFT DISTRIBUTING
Night Shift Distributing was launched in 2016 by privately-owned Massachusetts-based Night Shift Brewing to inspire a fresh approach to beverage distribution in Massachusetts. Disrupting the wholesaler market, Night Shift Distributing offers a unique distribution channel for craft beverage makers who share a like-minded approach to business and passion for their brands. Empowering and elevating local and national companies, Night Shift Distributing operates with a strong focus on quality and freshness, brand control, and customer service while ignoring archaic franchise laws. Night Shift Distributing currently operates in Massachusetts and is planning expansions in additional regional markets in 2020. For more information, please visit www.nightshiftfamily.com/distributing.
ABOUT NIGHT SHIFT BREWING
Night Shift Brewing is a privately-owned Massachusetts-based company founded in 2012 by a trio of friends with a shared passion for nocturnal homebrewing. Through determined innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, Night Shift creates memorable craft beers that offer a wide array of unique, complex flavors. Night Shit has created more than 300 unique beer recipes to date.
Beyond beer, Night Shift Brewing’s beverage portfolio includes a line of hard seltzer’s (Hoot Hard Seltzer), coffee (Night Shift Coffee) and the rotating experimental series, In Development.
Night Shift can currently be found in select retailers, bars and restaurants throughout Massachusetts, Maine and New York. Massachusetts residents can visit and sip on signature drinks at Night Shift’s flagship brewery and taproom in Everett, restaurant and innovation house at Lovejoy Wharf, or seasonal Owl’s Nest beer gardens at various locations along the Charles River. For more information, please visit www.nightshiftfamily.com/brewing.
ABOUT LOVERBOY
With just 90 calories and zero sugar, Loverboy is a naturally sweetened sparkling hard tea with all the flavor and none of the guilt. Carbonated like a seltzer, but with the light refreshing taste of an iced tea – Loverboy marries the perfect balance of organic brewed tea, botanicals, and monk fruit, with gluten-free alcohol to create a keto-friendly 4.2% ABV drink you can sip all day (and night!). The ready-to-drink craft beverage comes in three varieties: White Tea Peach, Hibiscus Pom and Lemon Iced Tea.
Founded by serial entrepreneur Kyle Cooke, who stars on Bravo TV’s Summer House, the brand has generated national awareness due to its reality TV integration. Conceptualized in 2018 while filming Summer House Season 3, Kyle’s Co-Star and Fiancé Amanda Batula helped bring Loverboy to life by leading the brand’s creative direction. As a result, Loverboy aims to standout and make a statement as an extension of Kyle and his love for colorful floral shirts, social party vibes, and playful nature.
Season 4 of Summer House will feature Loverboy’s go-to-market following the product and brand development captured in Season 3. Viewers can expect to see close friend and fellow co-star Carl Radke join Kyle and Amanda to help launch the company.
Summer House fans and beverage enthusiasts alike can find Loverboy throughout select bars, restaurants and direct-to-consumer retail locations throughout Massachusetts, New York and South Florida. For more information, visit Loverboy’s website at www.drinkloverboy.com or social media pages (Instagram and Twitter).