Cocktail in cans is fairly a new way of enjoying fancy drinks. And there is something interesting stirring in this space.

We met Paul the Co-founder of Phreshly who shared his cocktail journey and how he came up with the idea of Phreshly.

I was experimenting with healthy cocktails and mocktails at home when I saw there were none in store. What you get are full of artificial ingredients and sugar.

That’s when the idea of healthy, natural, low calorie cocktails came in. Paul created 134 cocktail recipes at home all with natural ingredient.

Paul’s vision and philosophy for Phreshly is straight- Be transparent, bring happiness to customers, make them part of the journey and educate them about the cocktail world.

He’s following the traditional way of building a brand. Gaining customers one by one. Having a brand story. Years of commitment. And gaining traction before getting deep into it.  

Phreshly will be officially launched in Spring 2021. Till them you can pre order and check out their website.

We asked Paul about starting a DTC business, branding, product and doing things from scratch. Here’s what we got:

HelloMeets: Why early stage founders should do things that don’t scale

Paul:

  • Hustle & Research

Phreshly isn’t founded yet. But I have reached out to 30,000 people so far asking, “When you go out to buy cocktail, what do you look for in it?”

  • Experiment

I made 134 recipes of cocktails at home. Be scrappy. Do it yourself. See what it’s like to make your product.

  • Don’t wait for the launch to start building your brand

Do it as early as possible. You can start by talking to people naturally. Example: I am talking to your right now about Phreshly. And when I launch it, you’ll already know about it.

The tag line cheers to life- is so that you can just pour your way through the experience

  • 'Done’ is better than ‘perfect’

HelloMeets: You haven’t launched yet, still what do you think will make you different than others?


Paul:

  • Product education is the key

I have worked at software companies like Yammer, which was acquired by Microsoft. In those companies, if they don’t know how to use the product, leverage it, they will not buy it. I am applying the learnings from my past companies, here at Phreshly.

I want to leverage fresh natural ingredients. Experimenting cocktails at my home I found out there’s not much transparency with the ingredients they use. Most of it is artificial flavours and sweeteners

Phreshly will teach you to create and style your own cocktail at home.

  • Transparency

I believe in being transparent with my consumers. The ingredients we use are 100% natural, low calorie and no artificial sugar. What they see on the can is what they get inside.

  • Engage consumers through educational content

We will show them through content — how to make it, the different styles, the stories of women growing hibiscus in Nigeria and Morocco, the natural ingredients, and their health attributes.

My Philosophy with Phreshly is to bring happiness to customers in a can. I want them to feel they are talking to their best friend when they engage with Phreshly.

HelloMeets: What about your competition?


Paul:

  • Experience their products, see what sets them apart

I have tried 44 products from the competitors in the last few months to see their products. And to see their customer journey and engagement with their customers.

I think customers want two things from you to be happy:

1.  Their wants to be fulfilled through your product

2. You engaging with them throughout

We learnt about cocktails, building a brand and made a new friend.

We are on a DTC virtual tour. And Phershly was our first stop. There are lot more stops coming up and lot more new friends to meet.

Stay tuned to see where we go next in this tour!