American Beverage Corp., a subsidiary of Harvest Hill Beverage Co., acquired Chicago startup Poppilu.
Founded by Melanie Kahn, a food industry veteran-turned-"momtrepreneur," Poppilu launched in 2017 as an antioxidant lemonade with no preservatives, no artificial flavors and less sugar than other top lemonade brands. The company uses aronia berries, which are locally grown super-fruits.
Born out of a pregnancy craving — Kahn decided to make her own low-sugar lemonade when she couldn't find any on the market — the company's product line includes blueberry lavender, passionfruit and original lemonade.
The company first targeted its better-for-you lemonades to adults and sold them in regional retailers throughout Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin, including Jewel-Osco. Then Poppilu shifted focus to kid-friendly pouches in 2020 and expanded its distribution to Walmart as well as other national retailers.
Poppilu was one of the first five companies named to the Kraft Heinz early-stage startup incubator that launched in 2018.
The company was named to Chicago Inno's 50 on Fire list in 2018.
