Welcome back to Cpgconnect. If your wondering, yes we switched to Substack and I am SO excited.
This week, we’re diving into a packed slate of events across NYC, Chicago, and SLC, plus fresh insights on how AI will shape Q4’s biggest sales season. On the brand side, we’ve got a syrup startup rethinking coffee rituals, a sports drink with cult-like branding, functional gummies pushing the supplement frontier, and a $12M boost for the original “mental performance shot.” Oh and Erewhon is charging $43K to sip smoothies in New York.
Let’s dive into it…
Events
RSVP - Commerce Mixer 9/9 (Nyc)
RSVP - Beanstalk Whiskey Tasting 9/10 (Nyc)
RSVP - Founders Basketball 9/10 (Nyc)
RSVP - End Of Summer Party 9/13 (Slc)
RSVP - Last Week of Summer Happy Hour! 9/16 (Nyc)
RSVP - Q4 Summit 9/16 (Nyc)
RSVP - Ultimate Casino Night 9/17 (Chi)
RSVP - Magic Show 9/17 (Chi)
RSVP - A Taste Of Chicago 9/18 (Chi)
RSVP - Pre-Grow Coffee + DJ 9/26 (Nyc)
Tech Spotlight: AI x Q4 Sales
Q4 is the most competitive season of the year—and the brands that win will be the ones who use AI to optimize every step of the customer journey.
That’s why we teamed up with leading Shopify partners to create:
📘Your Ultimate Guide to Acing Q4 Holiday Sales with AI Optimizations
Inside, you’ll find strategies to:
Convert more shoppers with AI-driven conversations
Scale personalized SMS, email, and lifecycle campaigns
Optimize support + loyalty for long-term retention
Protect profits through smarter returns & exchanges
Make this your most profitable Q4 yet.
Brand Spotlight: BrewMotif (aka Motif)
I’m excited to introduce BrewMotif, a naturally flavored syrup brand born from the belief that your daily coffee ritual can be elevated without processed sugar or fake flavor. Founded by Michael Zabar, who left a corporate path in pursuit of a purer coffee experience, Motif has been quietly developing its debut syrup line in a food lab, blending flavor science with clean ingredients.
What sets us apart: every bottle delivers real taste, free from artificial additives. Our behind-the-scenes product sampling and iterative development reflect our obsession with flavor authenticity. Expect a syrup that blends seamlessly with your coffee, not just in sweetness, but in integrity.
Ingredient Spotlight: goBHB®
When most people hear “ketones,” they think expensive, bitter, and niche. Honestly, that used to be my take too. But goBHB® is changing that.
This bio-identical ketone (BHB) your body naturally produces actually tastes good, fuels clean energy for body + brain, and works seamlessly across delivery formats, from powders and liquids to gummies and RTDs.
For brands, it’s a versatile tool: supporting focus, recovery, and the kind of “feel-it-now” benefits consumers increasingly expect, without the crash. As teams plan their next wave of innovation, goBHB® stands out as one of those rare ingredients that both performs and creates an experience worth building around.
Founder Clips w/ Josh Lekach from SportsDrink
What inspired you to start this brand, and what were the first steps you took to bring it to life?
Honestly, Sport Drink started almost as a fluke. I had been hosting a podcast and following a wave of new brands launching on Twitter and Instagram—everything from Van Man to MASSA Chips. I admired how they were doing things differently, and I posted on Instagram saying, “It’s never been easier to build your own brand—you just copy what the big guys are doing, but do it better and actually care about the consumer.” A friend who’s now my co-founder saw that and said, “Let’s actually do it.” From there, we spent a year tinkering with the formula, the packaging, and the branding—Sport Drink as a name came instantly from our designer. It was simple, confident, and cut right to the chase.
What sets your product apart in a crowded market?
For me, it’s the trifecta: branding, packaging, and product. The branding is bold, confident, and has its own bizarre, cult-like humor that makes us stand out. But more importantly, the product itself is different. We don’t rely on additives like maltodextrin, sucralose, or stevia. Instead, we use cane sugar, Baja Gold salt, and real fruit powders. Sugar has been unfairly vilified, but it’s actually the most natural way for your body to get energy and hydrate efficiently. Because we avoided shortcuts, our powder doesn’t clump or brick up like many others do, and the taste is clean—no weird aftertastes. That combination is what sets us apart.
What’s been the biggest challenge so far, and how did you overcome it?
Without a doubt, inventory and operations. In the first few months we were literally making 200 jars at a time in my co-founder’s garage. Then, when we sold out, we’d sometimes go months with no inventory at all. It took raising a small amount of capital to get proper manufacturing lined up and learning the hard way about scheduling POs in advance. The biggest shift was realizing we had to order the next batch before the current one sold out, building momentum instead of hitting stop-and-go moments. It’s been trial by fire, but we’ve learned to get more confident with scaling production.
How are you approaching growth in these early stages—what channels or strategies are most important to you?
So far it’s been Shopify and Amazon. Amazon, in particular, has been huge—it’s like having a digital billboard where most people are already shopping. We’re running ads, but only with a voice that stays true to the brand (no cookie-cutter captions). Beyond that, I’m thinking long-term about retail. In a year, I want us on shelves at Sprouts, Erewhon, or Whole Foods, and eventually in bigger box stores. The vision is to dominate shelf space by keeping our name simple and our branding bold so we stand out immediately. Down the line, a ready-to-drink format will help us take that leap.
One year from now, what does success look like for you and the brand?
A year from now, I see Sport Drink as more than just a DTC brand—we’ll be on shelves, standing out in the chaos of the electrolyte aisle. I want our ready-to-drink SKU out in the world, alongside our powders and stick packs, with strong sell-through both online and in stores. Success to me is building trust with customers who come back again and again, knowing the product not only tastes great but is genuinely better for them. If we can keep growing, expand distribution, and stay true to the weird, confident voice that makes Sport Drink unique, I’ll consider that a big win.
News
Brand Watch: Magic Mind
Venice-based Magic Mind, creator of the world’s first mental performance shot, just secured $12.4M in fresh equity funding, according to an SEC filing.
Founded in 2020, the brand has quickly built traction in the functional beverage space, positioning itself as a cognitive boost for focus, energy, and stress resilience.
You can already find Magic Mind on shelves at Erewhon, H-E-B, Sprouts, and select Albertsons banners. With new capital in hand, expect expansion in distribution and innovation as the brand looks to scale.
Brand Watch: Long Weekend
Long Weekend, a premium soup startup, is expanding its retail footprint. The brand’s debut line of soups is now rolling out at Wegmans, Market District, The Fresh Market, and additional regional retailers.
Positioned as “soup made better,” Long Weekend is tapping into consumer demand for convenient, high-quality meals. With a price point around $4.99 SRP, the brand is targeting the sweet spot between accessibility and premium appeal—while entering shelves at influential chains that help build awareness and credibility.
As seasonal demand for warm, ready-to-eat meals ramps up, Long Weekend’s timing is on point—signaling momentum in a category ready for fresh disruption.
Brand Watch: SuperMush
SuperMush is pushing the functional supplement space forward with the launch of the first-ever Creatine + Cordyceps Gummies.
Each serving packs up to 3.7 g of Creapure® creatine monohydrate—the gold standard for strength and lean muscle—plus 250 mg of Cordyceps fruiting body extract, known for boosting stamina, energy, and VO₂ max.
The gummies are sugar-free, vegan, non-GMO, and third-party tested, making them a clean and convenient alternative to traditional powders. By merging performance nutrition with functional mushrooms in a gummy format, SuperMush is bridging the gap between fitness and everyday wellness.
Industry Watch: Erewhon Goes Ultra-Exclusive in NYC
The iconic Los Angeles grocer Erewhon—famous for $21 smoothies and celebrity-fueled wellness culture—is finally making its way to New York. But there’s a twist: access will cost you $43,000.
Opening inside Kith Ivy, a private members’ padel club in the West Village, Erewhon’s New York footprint won’t be a full grocery but rather a mini tonic bar serving juices and smoothies from 7 a.m.–4 p.m.
The price of admission? A $36,000 initiation fee plus $7,000 annual dues, totaling $43K just to step inside. For non-members, Erewhon products will still be available via Uber Eats and Postmates, offering a delivery workaround.
The move has already sparked local pushback over noise, traffic, and exclusivity—but it underscores how Erewhon continues to blend prestige, wellness, and scarcity to fuel its cult-like brand aura.
Brand Watch: TakeZest 2.0
The “wake-up pill” just got smarter. TakeZest 2.0 is here, re-engineering caffeine to deliver instant morning energy while syncing with your circadian rhythm.
The innovation lies in its timed-release capsule—you take it before bed, and eight hours later the caffeine + L-Theanine + B-vitamin blend activates as you wake up. The goal: eliminate sleep inertia, replace groggy mornings with smoother, more natural wakefulness, and extend mental clarity into the day.
Early adopters call it “like driving down a ramp instead of slamming into an alarm clock.” Premium-priced and science-backed, Zest is leaning hard into the biohacking-meets-wellness niche—positioning itself as the next evolution of functional supplements for high-performance consumers.
That’s it for this week.
Whether you're launching your first SKU, scaling into Whole Foods, or trying to stay ahead of what’s breaking through, CPG Connect is here to help you keep pace.
See you next week✌️
— Zach
P.S. If this was helpful, feel free to pass it along to a friend, teammate, or founder in your orbit. And hit reply anytime, I read every note.
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