Jim Fletcher, 7-Eleven category manager for non-alcohol beverages, said, "A recent test of drank sales in a few hundred stores exceeded our expectations so much that we are adding drank to our nationwide [image-nocss] in-store product assortment within the next few weeks. Although we are a global corporation, we are a nimble retail operation with the ability to take advantage of local trends and products that customers want and distribute them nationally. drank opens up a new area of the functional beverage category for 7-Eleven, bringing the hot, new trend of relaxation beverages directly to our consumers."
Peter Bianchi, CEO of Innovative Beverage Group and creator of drank, said, "Securing shelf space at 7-Eleven has not only been a top priority for our rollout strategy, but a personal goal of mine. Since drank's introduction less than a year ago, we have consistently expanded our presence through strategic partnerships with a variety of widely respected beverage distributors."
Houston-based Innovative Beverage Group Holdings engages in the distribution and wholesaling of products in the New Age beverage category. It recently launched its first proprietary product, drank. Dubbed "the world's first extreme relaxation beverage," drank was created to induce a natural calming and soothing effect when consumed, the company said. The beverage is formulated with "natural calming agents" including melatonin, rose hips and valerian root.
Innovative Beverage Group began operations as a distributor for national brands of beverage products including Jolt, Rock Star, Crystal Geyser, Sweet Leaf tea, AriZona Iced Tea and Volvic Water. Although the company continues to distribute many of these well known brands in the greater Houston area, the expansion of Innovative's proprietary product division has become foremost in their business model. Recent corporate strategies have been focused on the marketing and distribution of drank. Innovative Beverage Group is also currently working to add additional proprietary products to its line that will complement drank and provide consumers with an array of new and unique concepts in the New Age beverage category.
7-Eleven, Dallas, operates, franchises or licenses approximately 7,800 7-Eleven stores in North America. Globally, it operates, franchises or licenses more than 36,000 stores in 17 countries. During 2008, 7-Eleven stores worldwide generated total sales of more than $53.7 billion.
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