When Brad Schultz and his childhood best friend Justin Fenchel tapped into their shared love of community, connection, and, of course, a good party, what started as a side hustle soon became a beverage revolution. Their innovative idea? To infuse the alcohol industry with a product that was not just a drink—but an experience. Enter: BeatBox Beverages.
In Ep. 129 of Earned, Conor uncorks this spirited story by sitting down with Brad, co-founder and CMO of the innovative and eco-conscious beverage brand that has taken the alcohol industry by storm.
We jump into the episode by discussing how Brad and Justin (fellow co-founder and CEO of BeatBox) evolved from teenage business enthusiasts to the masterminds behind a beverage revolution. Brad pulls back the curtain around the pair’s experience on Shark Tank, and we hear how the critical mentorship of Mark Cuban fueled the brand’s trajectory towards innovation and market success. We then discuss the strategic shifts that propelled BeatBox to new heights, like transitioning to eco-conscious Tetra Pak packaging. We explore the complex challenges of the alcohol industry's regulatory landscape and how Beatbox has navigated them with grace. Switching gears, Brad touches on Beatbox’s influencer marketing program and the community-building strategies that have kept the brand top of mind for consumers. To close the show, Brad reveals his favorite BeatBox flavors (which I will be adding to my cart shortly).
We’ve included a couple of highlights from the episode below, but be sure to check out the full video above, or tune into the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen!
The following interview has been lightly edited for concision.
“Building a true community is something that you have to earn”: How BeatBox Cultivates Community in Real-Life Moments
Conor Begley: You're doing a lot of collabs right now, whether it's with individual creators or brands. What are the big marketing channels for BeatBox outside of the actual physical distribution of the product?
Brad Schultz: Nothing beats trying the product. We're a beverage. Having it in the right environment trumps everything. We've always said that people don't want to hear from BeatBox Beverages about how cool Beatbox Beverages are. That's obvious. You know how we think about our own products. We've always said that if you're going to try a new product these days, you’ve got to have your best friend tell you, “Hey, go try this.” So we've centered everything around word of mouth and helping word-of-mouth experiences.
Michael Acton Smith, CEO of Calm, started a company called Moshi Monsters, and it’s like a Tamagotchi that you can play online with all of your friends. He built this amazing community of fans. They had millions of people paying $5 a month to be a part of this community, and what I saw there was the fact that so many people were doing it, which made it even more fun. That's kind of how we think about BeatBox. The idea that the more people who are drinking it, the more people who are enjoying it, the more fun the product is. At the end of the day, anybody can put liquid in a box. But building a true community is something that you have to earn. We do a lot and we're consistently adding to our marketing playbook, but at its core, it's in real-life moments and it's in word of mouth.
Keep up with new episodes of Earned by following the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts, or by subscribing to our YouTube channel. To catch up on our previous episodes, featuring leaders from brands like Revolve, K18, Meta, Stanley, and Roblox, visit our Earned Podcast page.