EATS

Gulpablility Is Key

Hillsdale-Based Beverage Brand Expands to 2,500 Stores Across the U.S. By Brianna Ruback

Larry Edinger has worked in beverage advertising for nearly 30 years, interacting with a range of popular brands like Coke, Pepsi and Dr. Pepper. The Westwood resident later started his own healthy vending business, but it wasn’t until 2015, when the Obama administration announced its new dietary guidelines, that Edinger decided to create a

Among the major items listed in the government’s guidelines was the recommendation to significantly limit the amount of added sugar in one’s daily caloric intake. Seeing a lack of companies adapting their products to the new nutrition standards enforced in schools, Edinger joined forces with Tony Errico, a River Vale resident, to generate a school-approved beverage idea. Errico’s only requirement was that his daughter, who has diabetes, would be able to consume the product.

After working out the beverage’s logistics, in 2016, the Bergen County duo’s Hillsdale-based company, Recovery Brands, launched Sol-Core, a fruit punch flavored sports drink that would be placed in school vending machines and 7-Eleven locations across northern New Jersey. Although the drink performed well, in 2018, Edinger sold his vending business to solely focus on rebranding Sol-Core into his current immunity boosting beverage: REZ.

“A vending machine is nothing more than an unmanned convenience store,” Edinger said. “So, what happens is you learn what products are selling, what flavors are selling, and again, to what audience.”

Unlike some drinks that only focus on one health-supporting element like electrolytes, REZ is what Edinger calls a “complete drink.” Formulated to restore the body, which is the significance behind the brand’s name, the sugar-free, 10-calorie and one-carb beverage contains an array of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. It’s also made with turmeric, which is known for its anti-inflammatory properties, and plant-based glucosamine, which is involved in joint support.

However, the challenge with producing

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a functional beverage is ensuring the health benefits aren’t at the expense of the flavor. In addition to researching vitamins and minerals, the REZ team worked with a flavor house to make sure REZ’s flavors would be enjoyable and strong enough to “cover” the drink’s functional elements.

“The term I always use is…I like to have a drink that has ‘gulpability,’ meaning you enjoy it so much [that] you have no problem gulping it down,” Edinger said.

REZ currently comes in three flavors: fruit punch, watermelon peach and orange mango. Going forward, as the brand expands into more retailers, the team is working on producing more flavors and eventually launching functional lemonades, iced teas and powdered drink mixes.

While REZ has several plans in the works, the company has still faced its share of challenges. At the beginning of 2020, the beverage was supposed to go into approximately 1,000 new stores, but as COVID-19 shutdowns took place, grocery stores no longer accepted new products and sampling wasn’t allowed. But with the plant-based diet on the rise, having people try REZ was essential.

“We never promoted ourselves as plant-based hydration prior to this year because before that, I don’t know if anybody would accept it,” Edinger said. “It would [have been] considered more like the aloe drinks or things like that, which, if you don’t like that taste, that would have been people’s perception [of REZ].”

Instead of offering consumers a cup of the drink instore, the REZ team opted to hand out full bottles of the product, along with information cards, in grocery store parking lots to raise brand awareness and build their customer base.

Now, as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, the company has gotten back on track. On June 2, REZ made its way into 670 Publix Super Markets, one of the largest grocery chains in the United States.

The plant-based drink will now be in approximately 2,500 stores across the country. When reflecting on his experience as a beverage company owner and CEO, Edinger said the most rewarding part of this journey has been working with his son, Justin, a rising sophomore at Coastal Carolina University. Justin, who has assisted with raising REZ’s brand awareness, was able to get his campus to distribute the beverage, which led to REZ securing several additional colleges, as well as Sysco Foods, the largest food distributor in the world.

What started out as a two-person Bergen County-based business venture has transformed into a national brand that has grown by 500 percent this year alone, according to recent company statement. Now operating with a 10-person team – with the majority being Pascack Valley High School alumni – Edinger emphasized the homegrown element of the beverage brand.

“It’s just unique,” Edinger said. “…You don’t get more local than us.”

For more information on REZ, visit www.rezbev.com, or follow the brand on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. REZ is also available for purchase on Amazon.