Why Attend
As sober-curious consumers embrace new lifestyle choices, the low and no alcohol industry is gearing up for considerable growth in North America. According to the IWSR Global opportunities in Low and No Alcohol report, in the USA alone, 52% of consumers are trying to reduce their alcohol intake. This is inline with the global trend of health consciousness fuelled by wellness culture. But this begs the question is the mindful drinking movement here to stay or is it just a fad?
The pandemic has been a teaching moment for many of us. Good for the planet – good for me is the major driving force for consumers upping their consumption online. Many brands are shifting to direct to consumer strategies creating more choice and opportunities. How will e-commerce, creating bar experience at home, mindful drinking choices, distant togetherness and on-demand delivery trends develop?
There is a wealth of untapped opportunity for disruptive start-ups, mid-tier independent beverage brands as well as multinationals, to create great tasting drinks to cater for this growing market. The Lo & No Beverage Summit: North America, November 4,5 & 9 taking place Virtually is your opportunity to meet with incumbent international brands venturing into the low and no alcohol category, innovative and disruptive low and no start-ups, as well as venture capitalists and ingredients manufacturers who are all entering the low and no space. Network with on/off traders who are hacking into this consumer trend with ingenious menus featuring the latest creations.
The Virtual Experience
Top 10 benefits
- Tailor Your Agenda
- More Audience Participation
- Improved Audience Visibility
- On-Demand Content
- High Quality Speakers
- More Networking Opportunities
- Save Time & Money
- Increased Content
- More insights
- Business Development Opportunities - Talk to our team to find out out more [email protected].
Platform Preview
What will the Lo & No Beverage Summit: North America help you to achieve?
Embracing new consumer preferences: Explore the latest trends from data analytics and the key drivers for the lo and no category. Understand best ways to partner with online distributors and benefit from direct to consumer strategies
Engaging the consumer: Discover how established and aspiring brands have developed their messaging, packaging and serving methods to meet with mindful drinkers’ expectations.
Market access: Network with buyers who are actively formulating their low and no strategies and looking to discover innovative products that entice the sober curious
Gaining distribution: Learn from successful brands on their key challenges when entering or expanding in the US and Canadian markets.
Strategizing: Understand the growing consumption trends to future-proof your business
Product pricing and placements: Learn what works and what doesn’t
Innovation: stay informed in the latest breakthroughs and innovations in the premium adult drinks category including CBD and other functional drinks
Regulation: Get the latest information from Federal and State level regulators on labelling requirements and descriptors, to support your market access strategy
Troubleshooting: Network with investors, learn from their strategies and find solutions for your financing needs
Who Will Be There
Early Confirmed Attending Companies
Speakers
Warren Bobrow
Brandy Rand
Brandy Rand is the Chief Operating Officer, Americas for the IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, the leading source of global beverage alcohol data and trends from across 157 countries, including market forecasts. As COO, Brandy oversees demand generation and strategy for North America, Canada and the Caribbean region.
Brandy joined the IWSR after 18 years of management experience in the beverage alcohol industry, with previous positions at Allied Domecq Spirits & Wines, William Grant & Sons, and Bacardi Limited. In these roles, she worked across multiple markets, covering brand commercial strategy, trade marketing, consumer engagement and product innovation. Brandy also ran her own consulting practice for many years, specializing in brand-building for media and consumer packaged goods, with clients such as Anheuser-Busch, Ritz Carlton, Beam Suntory and Bowers & Wilkins.
Brandy writes extensively about beverage alcohol in both national and trade publications. She sits on the advisory board of Vinexpo New York and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, including National Beverage Alcohol Control Association, Wine and Spirits/Beer Business Summit, Bar Convent, Brewer’s Association and BevNet. She holds a B.A. in anthropology from Tufts University and has done graduate studies in literature at Harvard University.
Tom Allison
Bill Gamelli
As an innovator in the No/Lo alcohol adult beverage industry, Bill and his family are proud to be exporting their premium drinks, made in the U.K., to 3 Continents. Bill brings his 15 years of finance experience at the global investment banks where his practice focused on post IPO and M&A liquidity for Private Equity, Venture Capital, and Start-up Company clients. Bill earned his undergraduate degree with double majors in economics and political science from Boston University, where he met his roommate, friend, and co-founder, Jim Dowla and, lucky for him, his wife Tracy. She turned out to be the inspiration for creating Mocktails, along with other family members among the Founders, Jim Dowla ad Mark Guthrie. Once Bill discovered that Mark and Jim were also starting a No/Lo alcohol beverage company, and they realized that 3 of 6 adults in their families were non-drinkers, it was an easy decision to pool their resources, and Mocktails was born.
Mark Livings
Matt D’Aloia
Pete Marino
Ana Henriques
Jakub Skyvara
Rob Fink
Rob Fink is CEO of Big Drop, a company he founded with zero brewing experience less than three years ago. And there wasn’t even anyone he could emulate… Rob was the first ever brewer to focus exclusively on Alcohol Free beer and the first to apply left-field fermenting techniques that meant no alcohol needed to be artificially extracted from the end product after brewing. Big Drop’s range of 0.5% ABV craft beers are available in supermarkets (Tesco, Ocado, Morrisons) with on-trade listings including: All Bar One, The Ivy Group, Barworks and Draft House. It has won numerous awards including No/Lo Champion at the 2019 International Brewing Awards and - the ‘Holy Grail’ of any non-alcoholic drink - winning against full-strength competitors (eg at the World Beer Awards and King of Craft at the Casual Dining show). Now with exports shortly to account for half of sales, Big Drop is also becoming a big name overseas too.
Fabien Gross
The wine house ‘Pierre Chavin’ was founded by Fabien Gross
and Mathilde Boulachin. Fabien Gross is a specialist of the art
of wine-blending and wine innovation.
Originally from Alsace, is grandfather, with whom he grew up,
had a wine estate and taught him the first tricks of the trade.
Fabien became passionate about viticulture and wanted to
delve into the scientific and biological aspects of the job.
For this, Fabien went to study agronomy, oenology in
Burgundy and WSET Diploma (starting the Master of Wine).
After successfully completing this, he started a blitz career in
the French wine industry and in California.
After several top jobs at large French wineries, Fabien wanted
to develop his own wine estate. In 2010, his dream became
reality and he founded the Villa Noria domain, where he
focused on the production of organic, environmentallyfriendly
wines.
There, our winegrower met Mathilde Boulachin, a marketing
specialist, and they founded wine estate Pierre Chavin
together.
At Pierre Chavin, Fabien is the chief winemaker and in charge
of R&D, innovation. He creating since 2011 the new line of
alcohol free wine.
Pierre Chavin is now the first French producer of premium
alcohol free wines.
Bill Shufelt
Alana Burstein
Alana always had plans to one day run a business of her own. For years, wine was her drink of choice when entertaining friends. After an evening of one too many glasses of wine, Alana knew she wanted to end her relationship with alcohol. So she channeled her energy into inspiration.
Frustrated with the sugary and juicy taste of wines without alcohol on the market, Alana was motivated to innovate. In 2016, with the legalization of cannabis on the horizon, Alana sought solution that could result in a more predictable elevation than edibles and a healthier alternative to smoking.
Alana spent countless hours sourcing the finest California grapes and premium cannabis, researching compliance and technology, and developing a team that could bring her vision to life. And in 2019, Viv&Oak was born. Full of flavor, low in sugar and low in calories, her creation is disrupting the industry. With Viv&Oak, Alana hopes to help break the stigma around cannabis and encourage fellow health-conscious consumers to toast to something really worth celebrating.
Dooma Wendschuh
Dooma Wendschuh, MFA is CEO & Co-Founder, of Province Brands of Canada. Under Mr. Wendschuh’s leadership, PBC has earned global notoriety (more than 2,000 mentions in the global media), raised more than $20 Million from venture investors (now has a valuation north of $70 Million) and now employs some of the top research scientists in the cannabis space.
Following more than one hundred speaking engagements, dozens of appearances on international television, Mr. Wendschuh has emerged as a leading voice in the burgeoning cannabis industry - advocating for a new paradigm where cannabis products can be a less harmful alternative to alcohol.
Prior to founding Province Brands of Canada, Mr. Wendschuh co-founded and ran a Colorado-based cannabinoid research firm which sold to Canopy Growth Corp. for more than $430 Million.
Before entering the cannabis industry, Mr. Wendschuh was co-founder & co-CEO of sekretagent Productions, a film & video game production company & advertising agency with offices in Los Angeles & Montreal. Collectively, sekretagent’s video games grossed more than USD $6 billion in worldwide sales. sekretagent’s advertising division worked for The Coca-Cola Company, General Motors, Polaroid & others. Under Mr. Wendschuh’s leadership, sekretagent also sold 8 motion picture scripts to major studios & produced THE PLAGUE for Sony Screengems.
Mr. Wendschuh graduated magna cum-laude from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public & International Affairs at Princeton University, & received his Masters from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinema / Television Peter Stark Producing Program.
Amy Ludlum
Heidi Dillon Otto
Sam Thonis
David Begg
Julie Cielo
Marcus Sakey
Derek Brown
Derek Brown is a spirits and cocktail expert, consultant, writer, and owner of 2017 Spirited Award winning “Best American Cocktail Bar” Columbia Room, and author of Spirits, Sugar, Water, Bitters: How the Cocktail Conquered the World published by Rizzoli in April 2019. His work has earned several James Beard Award nominations, "Author of the Year" for the 2020 Nightclub & Bar Show Awards, and 2015 “Bartender of the Year” in Imbibe magazine. He is also Chief Spirits Advisor to the National Archives Foundation and a Distinguished Fellow at Catholic University’s Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship. Brown’s writing on spirits and cocktails has appeared in The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Vox and other publications. In 2019, Washington Post restaurant critic Tom Sietsema named him one of the fifteen trailblazers since 2000 that have made Washington, D.C. a better place to eat (and drink).
Brandy Rand
Brandy Rand is the Chief Operating Officer, Americas for the IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, the leading source of global beverage alcohol data and trends from across 157 countries, including market forecasts. As COO, Brandy oversees demand generation and strategy for North America, Canada and the Caribbean region.
Brandy joined the IWSR after 18 years of management experience in the beverage alcohol industry, with previous positions at Allied Domecq Spirits & Wines, William Grant & Sons, and Bacardi Limited. In these roles, she worked across multiple markets, covering brand commercial strategy, trade marketing, consumer engagement and product innovation. Brandy also ran her own consulting practice for many years, specializing in brand-building for media and consumer packaged goods, with clients such as Anheuser-Busch, Ritz Carlton, Beam Suntory and Bowers & Wilkins.
Brandy writes extensively about beverage alcohol in both national and trade publications. She sits on the advisory board of Vinexpo New York and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, including National Beverage Alcohol Control Association, Wine and Spirits/Beer Business Summit, Bar Convent, Brewer’s Association and BevNet. She holds a B.A. in anthropology from Tufts University and has done graduate studies in literature at Harvard University.
Danny Stepper
Jeff Stevens
Marlon Hernandez
Lorelei Bandrovschi
Laura Lashley
Stephen Dillon
Stephen Dillon is the founder of Dublin based drinks innovation company RTM Beverages - The RTM portfolio is heavily focused on the No-Lo categories - Noki & Co. The Alcohol Free Gin & Tonic flavoured drink was launched in November 2018 and Loki & Co. Europe's first 'Hard Seltzer' was launched in 2017. A serial entrepreneur in the drinks industry Stephen has previously established a number of brands and businesses, he most recently worked as European Sales Director for the craft & speciality division of Ab-InBev. Stephen is a qualified beer sommelier and holds a WSET diploma in wines & spirits - he specialises in spotting trends in the drinks industry and bring innovative products to market at pace.
David Crooch
Ted Fleming
Eugenio Muraro
He has over 15 years of work experience in Sales & Marketing, first in the mechanical sector and then in the renewable energy sector. It was a period, during which he has achieved a mixture of skills and a knowledge of the international scene through frequent business trips abroad. His
passion for the world of cocktails led him in 2002 to successfully attend a professional bartending course. Later he participated in the 2015-2017 MBA Executive of the MIP Politecnico di Milano. The Master Degree program included the presentation of a business plan for the creation of a startup company and his project was awarded in July 2017. This project is called MeMento.
Craig Hutchison
Jake Hegeman
Smoke Wallin
Sharelle Klaus
Aga Jarzabek
Tom Britz
A career business development professional, Tom is the Founder and CEO of Glacier Hops Ranch, which pioneered Hopzoil® back in 2015. Tom previously held senior management positions in the U.S. ski resort industry in Vail, Colorado as well as in the payments industry.
A hop-industry insider, Tom was the first-ever national At-Large Director of the Hop Growers of America (HGA) and was subsequently appointed as National Chairman of the HGA’s Small Grower Council.
Now living in the shadow of Glacier National Park, Tom and his team call Whitefish, Montana home.
Shari B Mahon
Shari leads the company’s flavor technology and product development activities, focusing specifically on working directly with clients to deliver great tasting, healthier food and beverage options for their
consumers and expanding and strengthening their brand position.
Prior to joining Sweegen in 2018, Shari held various executive roles in the flavor industry focusing on domestic and global innovation with a proven track record in commercializing flavor and ingredient technologies.
Shari has been a successful senior leader in product and process development, global innovation and business development for 32 years and worked for Brown Forman, Flavorman, Sensient, Firmenich, Mane,
Senomyx and Chromocell.
Shari received her Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry from Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky and an Executive MBA from Rider University in Lawrenceville, NJ.
Chris Todd
Chris is an experienced consumer insights specialist who works day-to-day with global clients across the Food & Beverage, Home Care and Personal Care categories to inform their Innovation, Strategy and Marketing decisions using social data and trend prediction methodologies.
Phil Norminton
Ed Gerard
Ed Gerard has spent the last two decades working in Fine Wine & Spirits industries on both sides of the Atlantic. His background covers importation, wholesale, retail and hospitality. Most recently Ed spent 8 years at Harrods as Head of Wines, Spirits, Cigars and Pharmacy where he orchestrated the multi-million pound development of the lower ground space into the award winning location it is today. He has followed the No & Lo category with keen interest for the last few years and has joined in the mission now as Global Director Business Development with Mocktail Beverages.
Laura Schulman
I love the food world. All of it. I love the passionate people who put their hearts and souls into building brands. The immense talent I get to know and work with – industry veterans, dietitians, chefs, start-ups, non-profits – and individuals who have a common interest in creating a more exciting, more diverse and more sustainable food system for the future.
I have spent more than two decades in this world, and where I am today is truly the best part of the journey. I started my own firm in 2019 with the goal of doing what I do best, enjoying my work and making an impact. I learned so much working at the best global PR firms in the world (Weber Shandwick, Edelman, Burson Marsteller) on best-in-class clients including PepsiCo, Quaker, Campbell Soup Company, Oreo, Kraft, ADM, Cherry Marketing Institute and National Confectioners Association. And, it’s how I met my co-founder Etienne Hernandez – Medina who I’m proud to be partnering with on food forward work.
In my most recent role as an SVP, Partner at FleishmanHillard, I built and ran the Chicago office’s multi-million-dollar Food & Nutrition practice from the ground up. I started Food Futures Strategies. Now it was time to build something of my own. I created Crave It PR with my co-founder, colleague and friend Etienne Hernandez-Medina, the CEO of H+M Communications, to put game-changing brands front and center in today’s food culture, and grow their relevance and revenue in new, exciting ways.
Kristen Bareuther
David Bassani
Anna Whitehouse
Anna is a Vice President at Coefficient Capital, a growth equity fund investing consumer products that leverage technology to create competitive advantage. Entrepreneur named Anna one of its 100 Powerful Women of 2020 and Business Insider named her one of its “30 and Under: Rising Stars in Venture.
Platinum Partner
Mocktails
Website: https://www.mocktails.com
Our three families discovered that we were all searching for fun alcohol-free drinks without the artificial ingredients, preservatives or high fructose corn syrup when not drinking craft beer, wine, or cocktails. Sodas of any kind were clearly out. Water is healthy, but boring when you’re with colleagues, friends and family. Born out of our own need for a better experience, we started making small batch mixology inspired drinks that had taste worthy of the adult pallet without the hassle, calories, or chemicals. Today, we uniquely craft our alcohol-free cocktails in the UK, and distribute them on 3 Continents. Because we believe in doing well by doing good, we donate 10% of our profits to worthy causes. To learn more, visit www.mocktails.com.
Gold Partner
Black Swan Data
Website: https://www.blackswan.com/
Black Swan Data is a consumer and trend intelligence company that harnesses the power of the world’s largest focus group: the internet.
Using Natural Language Processing and AI our technology continually ingests millions of real-time social data conversations to identify, decode and predict which consumer needs, benefits, products and ingredients are forecast to grow fastest in the future. The analysis is powered by a TPV (Trend Prediction Value) algorithm which has an 89% rated prediction accuracy.
We call it Social Prediction and it enables companies like PepsiCo, Colgate and P&G to connect trends, identify new opportunities and build future-focused marketing and innovation strategies.
Sweegen
Website: https://sweegen.com/
SweeGen brings you Bestevia Taste Solutions, a full taste experience for sugar reduced foods and beverages delivering the sweetness profile and mouthfeel of full sugar. Our sugar-reduction portfolio combines next generation Stevia sweeteners with modulation and mouthfeel building blocks. All components are non-GMO, label friendly, nature-based and our sweet solutions offer ease at use and competitive cost in beverage, dairy, nutrition, condiments and many other applications. Make your next Sweet innovation with Sweegen
Silver Partner
Treatt
Website: https://www.treatt.com/
Treatt is a trusted ingredients and natural extracts provider to the global flavour, fragrance and consumer goods markets from our bases in the UK, the US and China.
We have been making the world taste better since our foundation in 1886. Committed to continuous improvement, we have deep established roots and a visionary strategic path that drives us forward.
Our people are creative, technically excellent and dedicated - allowing us to develop and supply a range of ready-made or bespoke systems to suit even the most adventurous needs.
Everyone from logistics, HR, finance, operations and research and development to sales, marketing, planning, IT and procurement work together, making us the sustainable partner of choice for our international customer base.
Dry Soda
Website: http://www.drinkdry.com
Founded in 2005 by Sharelle Klaus, DRY Soda Company, elevates non-alcoholic drinks from an afterthought to a must have for every celebration. DRY Botanical Bubbly is a sophisticated, lightly sweet, non-alcoholic beverage that is perfect to toast on its own and delicate enough to serve as the base for any zero-proof cocktail. The line features eight non-alcoholic, culinary-inspired flavors that are sweetened with a touch of cane sugar and available in 12-ounce glass bottles, slim 12-ounce cans, four-packs and seasonal 750-mL Celebration bottles. DRY Botanical Bubbly is sold in thousands of retail stores, restaurants and cafes across North America and at www.drinkdry.com. To join the DRY community, find zero-proof recipes and other inspiration, please visit www.drinkdry.com.
Glacier Hops Ranch
Website: https://glacierhopsranch.com/
GHR is the developer of an innovative hops-based essential oil extract - known by its registered name, Hopzoil® - with numerous applications in the beer, nonalcoholic beverage, and nutraceutical markets. Steam distilled from fresh hops and produced with no additives, Hopzoil® is a differentiated and potentially disruptive product ingredient for beer, beverage and wellness products offering a range of economic, product-flavoring and potential health benefits.
In addition to its Hopzoil® business, GHR has a global hops Broker/Dealer operation focused on the purchase and sale of a range of dried, processed hops traditionally used in beer production by breweries worldwide.
A global exporter, GHR has shipped its hop products to 48 countries on six continents.
Media Partners
Beverage Dynamics
Website: https://beveragedynamics.com/
Please visit our website for more information.DrinkPreneur
Website: https://www.drinkpreneur.com/
DrinkPreneur is a unique community of drink entrepreneurs. Our main purpose is to guide and inspire future and current beverage entrepreneurs by providing necessary information about beverage industry.
At the same time to create easier communication between raw material producers, contract manufacturers, packaging producers, marketing specialist, designers and everyone that is involved in beverage industry all over the world.
DrinkPreneur is giving you space to communicate, share experience and ideas, find solutions for new business and to discover ways how to upgrade already existing ones.
FoodBev Media
Website: http://foodbev.com
FoodBev Media is dedicated to the dissemination of news and information from all corners of the food & beverage industry.
Our flagship magazine, FoodBev offers readers an insight into the latest news, trends, innovations and analysis within the industry. Every edition includes exclusive features consisting of expert opinion, research and original editorial content.
FoodBev.com, and our dedicated newsletters, provide readers with the latest breaking news in the food & beverage industry. From product launches to company and sector-wide announcements, join fellow food & beverage industry professionals from around the world who already use FoodBev.com as their source of F&B news.
Inside Drinks
Website: https://www.nridigital.com/inside-drinks/
Please visit our website for more information.Liquid Careers
Website: https://www.liquidcareers.com/
Please visit our website for more information.Tasting Panel
Website: https://www.tastingpanelmag.com/
Please visit our website for more information.Restaurant Connection
Website: https://www.restaurateurconnection.com/
Join our community of over 91,000 restaurant owners and managers at Restaurateur Connection. Restaurateur Connection brings together the widest set of expert, thought-leadership content from hundreds of leading sources. Powered by Aggregage technology, Restaurateur Connection uses machine intelligence, smart algorithms, social media, and audience-driven data to deliver the most relevant insights directly to you. Sign up today to receive personalized content: www.restaurateurconnection.com.
Euromonitor International
Website: https://www.euromonitor.com/
Euromonitor International is a global market research company providing strategic market intelligence on industries, companies, economies and consumers around the world. Comprehensive international coverage and insights across consumer goods, business-to-business and service industries make our research an essential resource for businesses of all sizes
2019 Highlights
Download agenda
We're delighted to be launching The Virtual Lo & No Beverage Summit, 4,5 & 9 November 2020.
Key agenda highlights include:
Meet decision makers representing established and emerging brands including MolsonCoors and Partake Brewing; on and off trade establishments such as Park Street and Sunset Marquis Hotels and Villas; and investors at the only business to business platform in the low and no alcohol category in North America
Learn about the disruptive forces that underpin consumers’ preferences for low and no beverages, and understand how your business can make the most of these opportunities
Engage in experience sharing with industry leaders to take ownership of your brand’s destiny by understanding how to maximize sales and ensure a unique product offering
Download the latest agenda here and opt-in to hear from the latest news, insights and events in the Low and No Category
Download the Lo & No Beverage Summit: North America agenda
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Find out more by calling us at +44 (0)20 3696 2920 or email us at [email protected].
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