Really cool project. That cold shipping problem you mentioned sounds like a massive headache. I actually had a friend who was dealing with the exact same thing a while back . I remember him saying the game-changer for his business was looking into specialized cold chain 3PLs. Apparently they have all the refrigerated warehouses and get way better rates on overnight shipping. Might be a dead end, but could be worth a google. (not an expert in this stuff, just something I remembered)

On another note, it's cool to see another sibling team at it. My brother and i are also building a startup together (https://www.img-pt.com/). Our tool helps generate ads for products just like yours, without needing an agency or a huge budget, using the information on the website you already have.

Since you guys are in growth mode, would you be open to us making a few ad concepts for drinkiso with our software? I could send them over here for you to see if they're any good or useful. No pressure or strings attached at all.

Keep up the great work!

Just seeing this!

Re: shipping -yes that's where we're trying to get to. Right now going through traditional distributors is what we are doing because that helps us get retail footprint but one day, yes, we want to be D2C.

Re: siblings - oof, it's tough my man. Some days can be easy, others hard if not impossible. Not everyone gets to be as simpatico as the Collison brothers.

Re: ad concepts, yes absolutely - I'm more than happy to discuss. Did you have something specific in mind? What about costs?

I can't find the nutrition information anywhere on the site. The first thing I look for when I see "no sugar added" on any product is the sugar content. Not being able to see that before buying is a no-go for me.

Great point! I will add it to our site.

In terms of our sugar content, is 16g sugar and 17g sugar, respectively. (2 of our flavors are 17g, one is 16g).

In terms of "no sugar added", it's true, we don't add sugar. But we have natural sugars involved - our drinks are made with real fruit which obviously contains sugars. But we don't add stevia, fructose, or anything like that.

Part of hydrating effectively is adding sugar to your bloodstream as well as salts, etc.. in the right balance in addition to water / liquid.

Pretty cool, I’m sure you’re well aware but I feel like the powder packs are the future here. Makes E-commerce more feasible too. Have you looked into this? Guessing the fresh part rules it out?

Writing as someone that’s switched to liquid iv and have tried LMNT and a few others.

>Have you looked into this?

Yes. I get asked this frequently. I don't want to follow the same trend bandwagon that it seems everyone is on. Stick packs taste fake and often are loaded with non-essential junk (the FDA also doesn't regulate a lot of supplements).

A lot of stick packs are also leaning heavily into "natural flavors". A lot of our customers are people who go out of their way to avoid "natural flavors". If I put something in my body, I want to know what that something is, and I don't trust some catch-all term abused by corporations who put harmful chemicals in their products.

>Guessing the fresh part rules it out?

Correct. Gatorade is my competitor, not LMNT. If you're a fan of stick packs, you can replace LiquidIV/LMNT with half a teaspoon of pure sea or pink salt and a few drops of fresh squeezed lime and/or lemon juice in your water bottle. The end result will effectively be the same but you'll have more control over the flavor and saltiness. And it's cheaper.

Thanks for the response. Certainly respect your direction but I happen to think the trend will mature versus fade away. I know you're going after this certain niche, which I understand, but I don't think most people care as much about knowing exactly what is going into their bodies. I mean, sales and the average American diet proves as much. For me, the convenience of keeping a packet in my bag/desk/car/etc for weeks or months far outweighs the control over flavor and cost. Also usually prefer a tropical punch flavor over lemon/lime and that's more difficult to recreate on the fly (probably "natural flavors" lol). I don't have a workout regimen I just sometimes do work that is labor intensive and it helps me recover. It's usually an unplanned activity and the powder stuff is stable and available when I need it and really that's all I care about. I haven't even looked into the ingredients to see what it is that is actually helping me, but Liquid IV definitely is helping me recover and feel more hydrated than Gatorade ever has. Helps with cramps too, which I just assume is K but again, I haven't even looked. Just wanted to share my "customer journey" as anecdata, obviously no right/wrong path here and it's your company to push in whichever direction you want. Best of luck with it, I will give it a try if I ever see it in my area!