PepsiCo announced the culmination of its inaugural North American Nutrition Greenhouse class, awarding Hapi Drinks, an Austin, Texas-based company creating sugar-free drinks for kids, the final $100,000 grant.
Nutrition Greenhouse North America was launched in the fall of 2018 to discover and support emerging brands in the food and beverage sector. The program welcomed 10 diverse companies as part of its inaugural class, providing each with $20,000 and a partnership with PepsiCo mentors. These mentors — experts in strategic planning, brand optimization, product development, supply chain management, customer acquisition and distribution — helped the companies to realize and grow their market potential.
"The insights, guidance, and connections my PepsiCo mentors provided were invaluable and essential to unlocking new growth avenues for Hapi Drinks," said Karsten Idsal, CEO of Hapi Drinks. "We are passionate about our mission to fight childhood obesity by providing great tasting sugar free kids drinks and it is fantastic to get PepsiCo's support in our efforts."
During the six-month program, these 10 companies grew their revenues by an average of 200%. Other successes stemming from the program include the launch of new product lines, as well as digital campaigns that have driven sales and new customer acquisitions.
"We are so proud of the progress that each of the 10 companies achieved in the last six months, and it's a testament to what happens when big and small brands come together," said Daniel Grubbs, PepsiCo Ventures Group Managing Director. "More than that, the program has provided a very unique leadership experience for our colleague-mentors, who all feel energized by the agility, speed, and creativity that the entrepreneurs have embodied. They are excited to apply this entrepreneurial spirit to their day-to-day work at PepsiCo."
