Some product concepts come from sudden locations. The non-alcoholic Metropolis Seltzer model, for instance, was born at a beer pageant.

It’s the brainchild of Dominion Metropolis co-founder Josh McJannett and his group. Whereas internet hosting a beer pageant in early 2020, Ottawa-based Dominion Metropolis Brewing produced a number of cans of creamsicle-flavored seltzer water, in an effort to encourage attendees to hydrate. Clients cherished the seltzer a lot that the corporate began producing extra of it.

Simply 4 years later, Metropolis Seltzer has change into a bestseller, and now makes up 20% of the corporate’s income. Latest years have been difficult for beermakers, and shifting into seltzers solutions ademand. “Folks’s consumption and habits and attitudes are altering,” Josh says.

Dominion Metropolis Brewing basically is doing what it has at all times finished—domestically making a product its group is pleased with. Now they’re making use of that very same philosophy to a non-alcoholic different.

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Discovering objective in a brand new product

Josh says it was thrilling as a founder to tackle a brand new problem and construct one thing new after being in enterprise for a number of years. “For us to have the ability to … get into startup mode once more, it was very rewarding,” he says.

However the brewers had been a bit reluctant to tackle making a product that they hadn’t produced earlier than. Amid debates, the artistic course of started to emerge and, in the end, all the group rallied behind the brand new product. The addition aligned with the model’s different merchandise, however may very well be consumed by kids or individuals not eager to drink alcohol.

Differentiating the seltzer model

As a result of his seltzer model is geared toward a brand new viewers, Josh intentionally differentiated Metropolis Seltzer from Dominion Metropolis Brewing. He and his group labored with a neighborhood boutique design company to create a model that was youthful, entrepreneurial, and vivid.

Leveraging current assets

Dominion Metropolis Brewing used its current infrastructure to its benefit, beginning with promoting Metropolis Seltzer to its current bar and restaurant shoppers. “It was actually throwing a pair circumstances of Metropolis Seltzer on prime of the keg we had been dropping off to the native bar,” Josh says.

The brewery may additionally produce the Metropolis Seltzers in-house. The seltzer comes out of a tank of their constructing that’s usually reserved for beer and right into a clean can.

Increasing to new gross sales channels

After about 18 months, Metropolis Seltzer started to develop its distribution community, realizing it was now not constrained to companies with a liquor license. “There’s a complete new world of shoppers on the market that we may construct a relationship with,” Josh says. And the corporate selected to construct these relationships with prospects and retailers immediately. 

In a crowded market just like the non-alcoholic seltzer area, Josh believes a direct-to-consumer strategy will set Metropolis Seltzer aside. “Now we have to achieve individuals and talk a few of that humanity, authenticity, and objective larger than simply attempting to promote you one thing,” he says. That’s why Metropolis Seltzer goes out of its method to take part in group occasions, collaborate on limited-edition flavors, and provides again a portion of its proceeds to a neighborhood non-profit.

To study extra about Metropolis Seltzer and the way the model displays its group, take heed to the full interview on Shopify Masters.