Plant Press is creating an energy drink that is healthier for you.
NEW YORK Ariana Farahani was headed toward a PhD in neuroscience when she decided to take a detour and launch Plant Press drinks, a consumer packaged products firm. Ms. Farahani studied late into the night while in college, frequently reaching for coffee and energy drinks to help her stay awake. Ms. Farahani did not enjoy the way either made her feel after consuming many glasses of either.
She thus developed, tested, and produced a clean label caffeinated beverage substitute using her data talents.
Plant Press, which is marketed as “clean caffeine,” is made without preservatives, artificial sweeteners, gums, or natural food coloring and contains vitamins and electrolytes.
Ms. Farahani stated, “I like to think of it like what’s not in the beverage.” We make use of monk fruit, agave, and a small amount of stevia. It was crucial to me that the flavor was absent because I dislike the way stevia tastes.
Following several trials and iterations of the product, Ms. Farahani was aware that the product’s name needed to correspond with the beverage’s clean label profile.
“I knew when you combined caffeine and CBD, it would give you this awake but calm, no jitter feel,” the speaker added. “My very first concept was CBD and caffeine together.” “I really wanted the product to come across as healthy, real, and nature-driven, which is why these two ingredients require some sort of pressing of the plant to extract the ingredient.”
Even though Ms. Farahani’s early stock-keeping units included CBD and caffeine, she made the decision to go a more natural way with her product development.
She remarked, “I conducted a variety of market tests at New York City stores, testing everything from shelf placement to ingredient composition and branding.” “I utilized CBD as one of the components to gauge the hunger of the market. I changed my strategy after discovering that the majority of customers preferred Plant Press when it included only caffeine and no CBD.
In June 2022, Ms. Farahani established Plant Press.
She remarked, “We were landing in corporate offices where people needed caffeine, like Goldman Sachs and all the banks.” In exercise facilities like Pilates, yoga, and cycling classes, we also discovered this niche.
“When it comes to the nightlife scene, you may get your caffeine fix with an espresso martini or a Red Bull vodka. Where can I find something that tastes nice, provides energy and hydration, and allows me to stay up late without endangering my health?
While Ms. Farahani did not initially plan to market her product through bars and clubs, DJs who were looking for a healthier energy drink substitute were interested in the product.
“I’m not marketing this as a mixer, but people have been buying it for that purpose, so this is another way for us to grow,” the woman stated. “They (DJs) are saying that they drink Red Bull vodkas and that it’s bad for their health; however, Plant Press is a tasty and functional substitute.”
Ms. Farahani was able to secure $1.2 million in a seed investment round thanks to the publicity. With the support of the funds, Ms. Farahani will be able to enlarge her staff and focus on both product line expansion and retail and direct-to-consumer development.
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“It developed very naturally, and all that data basically produced this case study, which allowed me to go out and get funding,” the woman remarked. “Since I don’t have experience with consumer products or CPG, I had to provide evidence and justification to investors and others that this actually works.”
Ms. Farahani’s distribution has grown since her debut, going beyond Manhattan, New York, to Florida and Los Angeles.
Ms. Farahani stated that her goal for the company’s go-to-market strategy is to increase sales in every department.
“We want to expand a lot within natural stores and get more into retail through natural foods,” she stated. Also, there is a significant increase in pop-ups, on-the-ground activity, and direct-to-consumer traffic via Amazon.
In addition to expanding her firm into the retail and direct-to-consumer sectors, Ms. Farahani wants to expand her company into the health care industry.
“Healthcare workers work long, demanding shifts that last all night,” the speaker stated. “We’ve received inquiries from various health care groups, so I would like to focus more on targeting that demographic as they’re also very health conscious.”