NXT Water has officially launched the first ever broad-spectrum still CBD water with AKESO Hemp Powered Hydration. The company also announced a strategic partnership with venture capital firm Cava Capital.
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- NXT Water announces the official launch of AKESO Hemp Powered Hydration, the company's new 12mg broad spectrum CBD water. The first all-natural plant powered beverage to integrate hemp-derived CBD and electrolytes in 100% pure still water with zero calories, flavor or sugar, AKESO is in a class of its own, with first to market position.
AKESO is the only CPG product to include StrainSecure®, an integrated blockchain platform that registers and tracks intellectual property for the cannabis industry. AKESO has been tested by an independent third-party laboratory, with all results 100% verifiable via the blockchain backed QR code prominently positioned on each bottle. This makes AKESO the first-ever fully verifiable food or beverage in the U.S.
AKESO is now available nationwide through a new robust e-commerce platform. After a successful test market campaign in Southern California and New York which included major fitness chains and retail partnerships, the company is embarking on an aggressive national distribution strategy across the country. In conjunction with AKESO's national launch, NXT Water has secured significant strategic assets and management additions.
NXT Water has entered into a strategic investment partnership with Cava Capital, a venture capital firm focused on an owner-operator model, providing hands-on operating support for early stage consumer lifestyle, fitness, wellness and digital economy businesses. Cava Capital through its Cava Studio model, will provide direct access to its management team and operating partners which will be instrumental in the day to day operations of the company and the overall strategy to scale and distribute AKESO.
The NXT Water team includes senior executives with a combined 150+ years of beverage experience in Mergers & Acquisition, Business/Brand Development and National Sales and Distribution with major beverage companies including PepsiCo, Diageo, Bacardi, Gallo, Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits and Pernod Ricard.
"Our team has had the unique opportunity to evaluate more than a thousand beverage brands, as well as supporting the growth across the full lifecycle, from the first case and up to more than a billion dollars in revenue," said Geoff Schneider, CEO of Cava Capital. "I have always focused on the most critical success factors, and with the addition of our team I am tremendously optimistic about NXT Water's competitive advantage and expected growth trajectory in this booming category."
Most notably, NXT Water added Tony Kalich as Head of National Sales & Distribution. Kalich has more than 30 years of experience in the beverage industry, including senior management roles with Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits and Diageo. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President of Distributor Relations and Sales Capabilities at the former where he led the company's route to market strategies and the development of their sales force capabilities.
"From the moment I met the NXT Water team I knew we had a product that would completely disrupt the beverage industry," said Kalich. "I am tremendously optimistic about AKESO's competitive advantage and the ever-growing seasoned sales team that I have already onboarded. I'm excited to lead this highly motivated sales team and collaborate daily with the executive leadership at NXT to expand our business around the country."
"When we started NXT Water last year, we knew we needed to add a select few beverage rockstars to our team to help navigate this groundbreaking brand through a highly competitive industry," said Todd Waks, CEO, NXT Water. "I'm thrilled to have the beverage-centric, wellness-focused executive management team from Cava Capital along with Tony to represent our brand to his longstanding loyal following of distributors and retail buying teams. We just changed the game and now it's time for people to change their water."
About NXT Water
Formed by seasoned executives from the beverage, sports/entertainment and digital marketing verticals, NXT Water created AKESO, the finest hemp-derived water intended to significantly disrupt both the functional beverage as well as the burgeoning CBD industry which is projected to be over $20 billion by 2024. www.akesowater.com
