With a background in craft beer brewing and hospitality and a quest to live a little healthier, partners Dan Hastings and Amelia Carew created So Soda, a non-alcoholic adult soft drink brand.
“We felt that the options that were on the market were just not what we were looking for and certainly didn’t cut it in terms of being a refreshing alternative, and there were no brands with any fun, it was all so serious.
“We still wanted to enjoy ourselves, even if our friends chose to drink alcohol but we just couldn’t find something that met that need,” Carew said.
Based on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Carew said their goal was to stand-out from current NoLo offerings, which try to replicate alcoholic counterparts, are high in sugar and take themselves too seriously.
"There was a major gap in the market for a fun, flavoursome option that we intend to fill with So Soda,” she said.
Seeing the undeniable movement for low and non-alcoholic drinks, they realised there were similar parallels to the early days of the craft beer movement – being a limited offering and not a lot of flavour.
According to IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, interest in LoNo products has been growing significantly. The category saw overall volume growth of over 30 per cent in the US, bringing its total market value to more than $2 billion in 2021. The category now accounts for around oine per cent of the alcohol beverage market in the US, a small but growing segment.
Adult orientated sodas are a smaller segment than the remarkable take-off of alcoholic and NoLo seltzers, with So Soda joining brands like Mischief Brewing in Adelaide, and Melbourne based StrangeLove.
When talking inspiration for So Soda, Carew said they loved camping and enjoying sitting by the fire with a drink in hand, but when they wanted a refreshing non-alcoholic beverage, the choices were slim.
Recognising that the savvy consumer seeking a low or no alcohol lifestyle was also more likely to be health-conscious, Hastings said their first two flavour releases – Watermelon Mint Spritz and Yuzu Lime Chilli – had already made an impression on the market.
“Our research told us that people were driven not just by wellbeing but by the experience as well, and they crave a brand in hand they can be proud of,” he said.
A third flavour will be released very soon, with more in development.
The sodas have at least 50 per cent less sugar than comparative drinks, are all-natural, preservative-free and made to be drunk straight, mixed or garnished.
“The movement to drink less booze is clear. Everyone knows it and the data doesn’t lie. But not everyone is seeking sobriety, most just want to moderate their alcohol intake and they still want to enjoy a drink, but the migration to moderate their intake is hampered by the limited NOLO products available,” Hastings said.
The data available from IWSR confirms that the total abstainer is no longer the largest consumer market for NoLo products, with people avoiding alcohol completely accounting for just under a quarter (23 per cent) of the customer base.
Hastings and Carew spent many months in R&D and market research. Most retailers and distributors said NoLo products which had sweeteners did not sell well, and because the market was immature, there was a lack of consumer confidence in finding, and repeat purchasing, a quality product they felt was good value.
So Soda is priced competitively and retails at $17.99 per 4-pack cluster and $89.99 per 24-pack case through its website. A national rollout in major retailers and wholesalers in the pipeline.
