How Flyers Cocktail Company is Revolutionizing Non-Alcoholic Beverages

The non-alcoholic beverage market is experiencing unprecedented growth, with consumers increasingly seeking sophisticated alternatives to traditional cocktails. At the forefront of this revolution is Flyers Cocktail Company, founded by Lewie Lewis and led by Head of Operations Sierra Homer.

"We knew that if these big companies have an inability to innovate, particularly from scratch, going from zero to one, there was an opportunity," explains Lewis, who founded Flow Agency in 2015 before launching Flyers. His experience working with major brands like PepsiCo, Heineken, and Constellation provided crucial insights into why big beverage companies often struggle with innovation.

The key difference? While major beverage companies prioritize commercial viability from day one, Flyers took a different approach. "We wanted to create the best version of this non-alcoholic concept that we could and bring it to market," says Lewis. This led to an intensive development process, including 70 rounds of flavor work with renowned mixologist Ivy Mix.

Quality Over Compromise

Under Homer's operational leadership, the company maintains its commitment to sophisticated flavors without sacrificing quality. "Customers still wanted sophisticated flavors, but they also wanted something accessible," she notes. The team spent countless hours perfecting their formulas, ensuring each variant maintained its nuanced and complicated flavors even in commercial production.

This dedication to quality is reflected in their product development process. Rather than rushing to market with a compromised formula, Flyers invested time in creating their "secret recipe" - a proprietary blend that captures the essence of traditional cocktails without alcohol. "We always bring Ivy back with us. We always start at her bar with juices and fruits and making the fresh cocktail version of it before we can bring it to commercial," Homer explains.

Their current lineup includes three strategically chosen offerings:

• Old Fashioned: Targeting male consumers and winter occasions

• Apero Spritz: Appealing to female consumers and summer occasions

• Margarita: An all-time favorite with broad appeal

"Those three are different enough from each other to target different consumers," Lewis notes. "We have found that people try all three of them, pick the one that they like and then double down on that one. And that was intentional."

Navigating Growth and Challenges

Operating in the CBD hemp beverage space comes with unique challenges, from banking restrictions to marketing limitations. Despite these obstacles, Flyers has achieved impressive 280% revenue growth over the past year. The company's success in this complex regulatory environment stems from their ability to remain agile and adaptive.

As Head of Operations, Homer has been instrumental in developing systems that can adapt to rapid market changes. "The biggest thing is just being able to be nimble and how you can catch the changes," she explains. This adaptability has proven crucial as regulations vary by state and can change rapidly. Under her operational guidance, the company has successfully expanded to 10 states, with plans to reach 20 by year's end.

Their approach to growth has been methodical and strategic. "We're trying to pump the brakes a little bit and just go deeper instead of wider, be a little bit more selective about the partners that we work with," Lewis shares. This careful expansion strategy has helped them build strong relationships with distributors and retailers while maintaining product quality and brand integrity.

The Future of Social Drinking

Flyers envisions a future where non-alcoholic options are fully integrated into traditional drinking occasions. "We anticipate a beverage menu to be there with all these different types of products on one menu, similar to where the food menus moved to," Lewis explains, drawing parallels to how vegetarian options have become mainstream on restaurant menus.

This vision extends beyond just placement - it's about creating legitimate alternatives that deserve equal billing with traditional cocktails. "We're trying to work with bars and restaurants to help build that and say, 'hey, this is a margarita. It's a complex, sophisticated margarita worthy of being on this menu, but it's THC instead of alcohol.'"

The company's approach to talent and growth reflects this long-term vision. With 10 team members and various contractors, Flyers takes a measured approach to building their organization. Homer's operational expertise has been crucial in developing sustainable growth strategies. "We want to make sure that they're happy with us and working with Flyers and that we're happy with them and that we continue to create this deeper relationship over time," she explains.

Looking Ahead

With continued expansion plans and a focus on deepening market penetration, Flyers Cocktail Company is positioned to lead the evolution of social drinking. Their success demonstrates that when it comes to non-alcoholic alternatives, consumers won't settle for simple mocktails - they want sophisticated, thoughtfully crafted beverages that can stand alongside traditional cocktails.

As the non-alcoholic beverage market continues to grow, Flyers' commitment to quality, innovation, and strategic growth sets them apart in an increasingly crowded space. The combination of Lewis's industry expertise and Homer's operational leadership has created a foundation for sustainable growth in the dynamic non-alcoholic beverage market.

Editor’s note - My camera decided to be very wonky and I am not sure exactly why, so the normal flow of the video conversation will be slightly different. The audio is all good though!