Josh Halpern

Tequila!   Many large players such as White Claw, and The Boston Beer Company (maker of Truly) are expanding their offerings and releasing tequila-flavored ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails as consumers are increasingly turning to tequila offerings in the beverage alcohol sector.   I had the opportunity to share my insights and thoughts on this surging trend with The Food Institute. In the article, I emphasized how innovations in ready-to-drink (RTD) formats, including tequila-based seltzers and margaritas, are meeting consumer demand for novel flavors. Additionally, I pointed out that tequila production has remained stable despite global supply chain disruptions and highlighted the increasing consumer preference for high-quality artisanal spirits.   Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gB9f-3Ci   #Tequila #BeverageIndustry #MarketTrends #ConsumerInsights #RTDCocktails

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McDonald’s is cranking up the heat on the discount wars next week, as they roll out a $5 meal deal promotion aimed to draw in value-conscious customers. With economic anxiety on the rise, and our recent data showing a notable pullback in consumer spending across dining, entertainment, and retail, will the move be enough to pull customers away from competitors? Thanks again Nation's Restaurant News for featuring my article! Curious to see which chains might feel the heat and which ones are better positioned to weather the storm? Click the link below for the full insights! #restaurants #discounting #customerexperience #value #nrn

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In recent years the beverage industry has witnessed a remarkable shift driven by the preferences of younger consumers. Two emerging trends, non-alcoholic spirits, and boba, have captured the attention of younger folks and are experiencing significant growth as a result. According to the article, one-third of consumers ages 18 to 24 abstain from alcohol altogether. This shift in drinking habits has paved the way for the emergence of non-alcoholic drinking options, providing consumers with sophisticated and flavorful alternatives to traditional alcoholic beverages. #DrinkingTrends #YoungConsumers #Boba #NonAlcoholicSpirits

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Dear Struggling Enterprise Brands, At the NRA Show, we engaged with medium and large-size brands facing challenges in reclaiming their former glory. Many share a common struggle, witnessing a cycle of price increases, temporary sales spikes, and subsequent declines, wash, rinse, repeat, leading to uncertainty about the future with a byproduct of dwindling morale. It's disheartening to witness repetitive attempts at solutions like new leadership, menu changes, and location alterations without leveraging the valuable data at their disposal. Data they have been sitting on for years. The pressure to maintain profits amid rising costs can make every decision feel like a make-or-break situation... because in many cases it is. Fortunately, there's a solution. Machine Learning and Actionable Intelligence offer unparalleled speed and accuracy in decision-making, leveraging existing data to pave the way for smarter, data-driven strategies. By harnessing technology to analyze honest guest feedback found within transaction details, businesses can tailor location-specific solutions for sustainable growth. That's where the battles are won or lost. District Managers and Franchise Business Consultants hold the key to driving individual location performance. RedOnion.ai stands as the "Wizard Behind The Drapes" empowering them with insights to anticipate challenges and opportunities proactively. All before ever stepping a foot inside a location. Don't rely on guesswork with a diminishing profit pool for marketing efforts. Embrace data-driven strategies to address your brand's challenges effectively and join our esteemed client list to navigate the complexities of the industry with confidence. Here's a peak behind our drapes of how we do, what we do at Red Onion. WardO@RedOnion.ai Leader in Guest Behavior Analytics since 2014

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🎙Heard at #RLC2024 from Pete Cancro from Jersey Mike's Subs -- they have a $200M annual marketing budget. With 2720 stores that means the budget breaks down like this: - Per store per year: $73529.41 - Per store per month: $6127.45 - Per store per day: $201.45 Want to be a brand that's getting an offer for $8 billion to sale? You now know what you need to spend PER DAY on marketing ... #RLC #restaurantleadershipconference #restaurantbusiness #restauranttech #restaurantowners #restaurantmarketing #restaurantindustry #restaurantowner

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latest Snaxshot are you even ready?! 🌶 Momo-fuk-u takes everything back, best naive acting goes to Momofuku and marguerite mariscal just agreeing to everything, WOW! 📈Boisson retail is no more but NA continues to grow 🛒 Erewhon's RTD is apparently debuting in over 100 stores in SoCal 🍻Liquid Death, Not Beer and the vice-fication of water 👀Dr Smood Group's doubling down in CPG CURATION OF NEW BRANDS + MORE! immi's ramen-ventions: a category outlook

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Over 10,000 jobs lost in the QSR/fast food space in California alone according to the California Business and Industrial Alliance (CABIA) Operators needed to raise prices and lay off workers to avoid shutting down Some still shut down These 10,000+ workers need to be repositioned in the workforce because QSR/fast food operators will turn to automation to stay afloat Food/beverage operators can't fight economics and math with heads in the sand Any job or repetitive task that can be automated will be so let's focus on how we can leverage workers in other roles that can't be automated #automated #repetitivetasks #workforce #operations

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Exciting news from Craveworthy Brands As many of you know, I love to hint at our next big moves. Some might question this approach, but I believe it’s crucial to show my commitment to pushing our team and our dreams to new heights. Our latest acquisition is a game-changer, bringing Taim and Hot Chicken Takeover into our family! This strategic move will supercharge growth for our beloved Soom Soom and The Budlong Southern Chicken providing them an extraordinary platform to thrive. Additionally, it accelerates the expansion for Sigri Indian BBQ, offering immediate opportunities for two to three new locations. We’re also setting the stage to launch Costeño Rojo, testing a few locations to refine our concept further. But it’s not just about growth—it’s about people. We’re thrilled to collaborate with the fantastic teams at Taim and Hot Chicken Takeover. Their passion and innovation are exactly what we need to reach new heights. I’m excited to see what we can achieve together with this incredible talent. Stay tuned. We’re just getting started! #CraveworthyBrands #BusinessGrowth #Acquisition #FoodIndustry #Leadership #Innovation #RestaurantBusiness #Teamwork #Entrepreneurship #BrandExpansion

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Texas Wine Market Monday! How can you drive higher sales volumes in todays softer retail consumer market? 🍷 🍇 Things aren’t how the were just after “re-opening” with massive tasting room traffic numbers and sales conversion rates. Every customer who walks in is PRECIOUS! 💎 1) Have a unique and facisinating story/draw to get people in the door. Try not to make it “stereotypical winery” story if at all possible. It doesn’t even have to be your whole lineup, maybe even just a single label! ⭐️ 🤩 ⭐️ 2) Back things up with OUTSTANDING wine quality! Getting them in the door means zilch if you can’t make them a new convert and brand loyalist! Hammer home your cool story with amazing product. 🥇🍷 🏆 3) Don’t spend a ton of capital to try new things in todays market when capital is much more expensive. Leverage partners to help you! While you are looking to make the next product to push your business further, don’t dump a bunch of expensive capital on equipment or tank space until you prove out the concept. Leverage partners to do that R&D and product development with THEIR equipment! 💵⚙️🧐 Tip if you read to the end: We are seeing more movement in wine-based beverages that aren’t your traditional still wines! Think creatively and look for problems to solve, folks! Texas Vine Country FermForge Matt Moreland Mike Moreland Brian CHEESEBOROUGH #TexasVineyards #TexasWine #GrapeReturns Shoutout to Vmech Technology / Westside Equipment Company / Oxbo for the sweet hat! It’s one of my favorites!

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One in five consumers who purchase frozen food items usually buy a store-brand product, and that figure is growing, according to “The Power of Frozen 2023” report from the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) and FMI- The Food Industry Association. The big factor turning the eyes of consumers toward private label products, unsurprisingly, is price. While private label and national-brand frozen products each saw unit share erosion in 2023 — down 3% for private label and down 5.4% for national brands — both segments saw dollar sales grow 7.7% during the prior year. Also notable is the rather weak brand loyalty that consumers have within frozen food despite the category’s having some long-standing national brands. The AFFI report found that 20% of consumers usually purchase private label frozen food products, while 16% said that they prefer national brands. Nearly four in 10 said that brand preference varies by item, and 26% had no brand preference. | Progressive Grocer https://lnkd.in/gFZEj_j3 #retail #supermarkets #frozenfoods #storebrands #privatelabel #consumers

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**If I had to give one peice of advice to a new brand ** No retail buyer will pass on a product that is in demand. In early stage beverage industry we would flood the parking lot of key chain accounts with cold drinks on hot days, we would catch people leaving the store not going in; the pitch was simple: “Stay safe in this heat; and Thank you for shopping at (store name)” 1. Who passes up a cold drink on a hot day? 2. We got the product into their car (not a trash can) 3. We built consumer association with a store we’re not even in. 4. We show a kind act that we cared about their safety. You know who took us into the store? The kids having to collect carts, they would grab a drink while in the parking lot and go inside and tell 2-3 friends that would then come out and grab a drink and take it into the store and next thing you know it would make it to the break room, a desk, at a register… but it wasn’t sold there YET.. Two things would happen; we would be asked to leave the parking lot (happened a lot but we’d be back) they would eventually tell us to speak to XYZ about getting our product in. And this is how we broke into retail pre sales force, call center and cold email, cold text era. A lot of times the store manager wouldn’t have the authority to bring the product in but they would send it up the chain; if 4-5 of your stores start making the request, it moved the dials. We landed smith, krogers, Safeway all through these style activations. Note* we would also send people in asking managers for the product. Yeah ok, maybe we sent in 25 a week asking for it in exchange for free product but that’s another program. 🤷🏻‍♂️ Activations win customers

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SAFE NOTES ARE NOW UNSAFE... OK so what is going to happen to the money that was poured into CPG Brands via these supposed SAFE Notes? Issue is that no priced round took place and now it is likely if it did happen it would be at a fraction of the valuation that was contemplated leading to massive dilution for the founder. Many have a cap...few have a floor. and unless they are converted it will be impossible to raise new money at any valuation. #cpg #safenotes #fundraising

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I am excited when Walmart innovates. The launch of their new Better Goods food brand is bringing innovation, a new private label brand, and new price points to their shelves. This is a smart move at a time when shoppers are changing stores to save money. I know people who have said they would not buy private-label food from Walmart. With this new launch of more than 300 products, there will be many new interesting and tasty products for shoppers to try. This is worth watching. #foodstrategy #foodandbeverage #foodinnovation

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"$100b (not a typo) that can be shared amongst the stakeholders" in the foodservice supply chain! Mani Kulasooriya and his team at Cut+Dry are some of the smartest people I know in this business. The latest Farm to Fork: The Innovators Podcast episode is absolutely a must listen. Money back guarantee! #FoodTech #PodcastEpisodes

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CMOs have long served as chief dot connectors, and they can use the strength of their cross-functional and often cross-geographic relationships to help drive effective change. CMOs have always had accountability for the brand promise, and the challenge has been to deliver that brand promise across a customer journey owned by many other functions — from supply chain to customer care. The reality causes marketers to adapt as leaders and become strong integrators of experience across the organization. The nature of a CMO’s job requires strong leadership and cross-functional collaboration, preparing them uniquely as leaders for broader transformation efforts. #chiefdotconnector #transformation #leadership

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Craveworthy Brands is leading the Chicken and Mediterranean segments. We are excited to announce the acquisition of Untamed Brands, which includes two incredible concepts - taim mediterranean kitchen & Hot Chicken Takeover. If you are interested in owning your own restaurant through franchising, take a look a Craveworthy Brands. We have established concepts in many of the hottest growth segments. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter for all the latest restaurant franchise news and insights. #wings #southernchicken #bowls #cookies #mediterranean #indian

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I am proud to announce that I just joined the Board of Directors for Spirits Capital Corporation https://lnkd.in/eWCERwUn Spirits Capital Corporation ( https://lnkd.in/ew_JAa9d ) is a #fintech company that merges #technology with the alternative asset class of premium American whiskey and other spirits. The Company's mission is to develop, utilize, and monetize the spirits industry through technology-driven platforms that enable investors, family offices, and institutions to value, invest in, and profit from maturing spirits. Founded with a focus on American whiskey, Spirits has built a platform that provides #investors with a secure and transparent way to capitalize on the growth in value of the spirit while it matures in the barrel. In addition, Spirits has created the Distilled Barrels Financial Exchange (“DBFEX”), a cutting-edge digital platform for the global trading of aged whiskey barrels. DBFEX uses a proprietary artificial intelligence (“#AI”) driven pricing tool, known as the Barrel Value Optimizer, to analyze an extensive array of market data and barrel-specific information to suggest optimal price ranges for aged whiskey barrels. Todd Sanders https://lnkd.in/ew_JAa9d

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