N.B. man starts his own company to replace traditional energy drinks
Work Water came from Brody Hanson's desire to replace traditional energy drinks.
"It's a benefit and a curse to not knowing anything about the business you're going in, and that's where I'm at," said Brody Hanson, CEO of Work Water. "I'm starting from zero in terms of beverage experience."
He saw a market and made it work for him.
"Caffeine is the fuel of the working professional, and so I was one of those that would drink one or two energy drinks a day as an alternative to coffee, I didn't like coffee all that much," he said.
Hanson says he was turned off most off-the-shelf energy drinks, after a deep dive on their ingredient list.
"What's under the hood, I knew there had to be a better, healthier version of this that I could make, so I started mixing and making stuff for myself and once I talked about this to other people, I learned that there were more folks like me who wanted a healthier alternative," Hanson said.
And that's what the Fredericton native set out to create.
"They're no artificial sweeteners, no artificial preservatives, no sugar. What is in it? Stevia is the sweetener that we use, natural flavours, natural ingredients, natural caffeine extracted from green coffee beans, it's a clean label as the industry lingo I'm starting to learn would talk about," he said.
Hanson says the benefit of getting into a business you don't have a background in is getting to question how things are often done.
"Beverages don't ship direct to consumer, so I asked well why not, ok well they're heavy, it's hard to ship, but the landscape has changed; we sell online through our Shopify website," Hanson said.
There was another important aspect for Hanson when designing the beverage.
"The other problem with traditional energy drinks is they look like they're ready for you to compete in the X games, I mean, I'm 39 years old, I'm not looking to snowboard down a rocky mountain I'm looking to stay awake for this meeting, and so it doesn't work to bring out a can of brightly coloured, firework, unicorn, rainbows," he said.
Work Water, which Hanson says taste like -- quote -- "an elevated white popsicle," is already available in about 30 New Brunswick stores.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
BREAKING Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
The Body Shop Canada explores sale as demand outpaces inventory: court filing
The Body Shop Canada is exploring a sale as it struggles to get its hands on enough inventory to keep up with "robust" sales after announcing it would file for creditor protection and close 33 stores.
Vicious attack on a dog ends with charges for northern Ont. suspect
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 22-year-old man with animal cruelty following an attack on a dog Thursday morning.
On federal budget, Macklem says 'fiscal track has not changed significantly'
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says Canada's fiscal position has 'not changed significantly' following the release of the federal government's budget.