Serial entrepreneur Aron Woolman quit drinking alcohol – “not for any particular reason.” And that’s when the gap in drink selection became obvious, leading to the idea that would become Carrboro-based RSRV Collective.
“If you went out for drinks with friends or colleagues, or you went out to a nice restaurant and you wanted to have something nice to drink, your choice was like, Pellegrino,” he said. “You’re relegated to sodas, or like, water.”
Then Woolman visited a random restaurant while traveling and discovered that it didn’t have to be that way. He recalls a menu of creative cocktails – including several that were non-alcoholic. They had all the tricks – just no booze.
“A cocktail classically balances flavors – sweetness, acidity, bitterness, texture,” he said. And none of those have to be alcohol.
So Woolman, who left Wall Street for entrepreneurship decades ago, decided to go all in, and investors seem to be backing his play.
Monday, RSRV Collective closed on $820,000 of what will soon be a $1 million round, according to Woolman. A contract packager has been chosen. The launch is scheduled for 2022, with four initial drink offerings.
“I could tell you what they are, but I think that would be doing a disservice to the people who have signed up to be founding members on the website,” he said.
In addition to Woolman, founders include Robert Ermatinger, Jeffrey Perlstein and Raoul Rodriguez.
According to a securities filing, RSRV's debt funder came from 18 investors.
We asked Woolman why he’s founding the firm in Carrboro, as all of his co-founders are located elsewhere.
“The world continues to be a smaller and smaller place,” he said. “I love North Carolina. I don’t have any plans on leaving any time soon.”
Woolman’s firm – named as a play on the word “Reserve” – is one of a handful of beverage startups in the Triangle that are playing outside of the alcohol space. Tribucha, for example, is creating both kombuchas and specialty sodas. Slingshot Coffee is creating both coldbrew coffees and coffee sodas.
It’s a competitive space – and both Tribucha and Slingshot have spent years targeting big box retail to ensure their products get into the hands of consumers.
Woolman said his plan is to go all in on the e-commerce route initially before reaching out to other distribution channels, such as restaurants.
John Replogle, co-founder of Raleigh's One Better Ventures, has experience with these kinds of startups. So Inno asked what kinds of challenges firms like RSRV face.
Replogle, whose porfolio includes Slingshot, said distribution is the biggest pain-point.
The "route to market" is primarily controlled by big beverage brands, he said. And selling direct to consumer can be expensive.
“The cost of freight makes it hard to realize a profit,” Replogle said.