Less than two months till launch 🚀

No. We're not ready.

Kia ora!
This looks a bit different because we've moved to Substack.
With less than six weeks until launch, we're splitting up our newsletters.

Our Substack will be for behind-the-scenes insights as we grow, insights into the drinks industry, stuff about plastic - who knows where we’ll go really. More casual, blog post style stuff. It’ll be mostly from me (Brianne), but the Incrediballs team will definitely get involved too.

Our other newsletter, (which we haven't double-subscribed you to don’t worry,) will focus on products more specifically, some updates, recipes, and the usual stuff you’d expect from a drinks brand.

If that's more your style, feel free to unsubscribe from this one. Otherwise, stick around for some fun and the occasional rant about the drinks industry!

We’re less than two months from launch. Which means, if you’ve seen me recently, you’re probably wearing an Incrediballs t-shirt or you’ve been covered in stickers.
One or the other - I let you choose, I’m nice like that.

Most of the fun and creative bits (formulating, packaging, branding - the good stuff) are behind us, which is my favourite part. Now it’s things like coding, which is not my idea of a good time 🙃

Then I had hand surgery and now I can’t type properly. Oh the fun of startups!

How I Plan My Businesses

Turns out, when I’m stuck at home and mildly high (prescribed painkillers only) I have great business ideas. Well, I think they’re great.
Three ideas, actually. All for the next Incredi-things I want to build.

People are often interested in how I come up with ideas - well, whilst I maintain that an idea is the easy bit, my process is basically this:
Step 1. Notice: a problem caused by exploitative or destructive practices in a business or industry (this is the easy bit).
Step 2. Ask: could it be fixed, or improved, by changing the supply chain, paying people a fair price, removing plastic and excess packaging, changing the product formulation or structure and so on.
Step 3. Ignore anyone who says it can’t be done until you prove them wrong.

Because business has caused so many of the problems we’re facing - socially, environmentally. But it’s also one of the best tools to fix them (but it has to be done kindly, ethically - in other words, not business as usual).

So, if you’re following along (as I know some of you are) because you too want to use business to change the world, have a look around. Once you start seeing how unethical, or nonsensical, or inefficient things are, well, the ideas flow easily.
Even easier if you're bored, horizontal, and legally medicated.

Things You Want to Know

Some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) we’ve received so far.

→ Is there caffeine in the cola?
Nope. Classic Cola is caffeine-free. Good for late nights or afternoons (or all day really it’s bloody delicious) . But we’re playing with some more energising options for future flavours. Watch this space…

→ Will the grapefruit flavour interfere with medications?
Nope! Don’t worry - this is a big concern but the compounds in real grapefruit that cause drug interactions (called furanocoumarins) aren’t in our Tangy Grapefruit. So, sip away safely!

→ What time are you launching? What if I miss it?!
Don’t stress – we’re making a decent amount of stock and won’t be vague about timing. You’ll get a heads up so you’re not refreshing the website in a panic. However, our earliest supporters (yes, that’s you) will get a headstart on the website as a thank you 💚

And Finally… Speaking of Plastic

I don’t talk much about my passion project, Now That’s What I Call Green, in these emails. But it’s a big part of why I do any of this.

I love ethical business and creating new ways to rid the world of plastic. But that’s because I've always loved science and finding out as much as possible about the world we live in more. It’s all fascinating.

And right now? Science literacy and trust are at an all-time low. We used to value experts and evidence. Now it’s whoever shouts the loudest that gets heard.

Take microplastics. We’re just starting to understand how bad it might be - and already, the early signs aren’t great. So I wanted to discuss the facts with an actual expert.

5% of our brains are now plastic?!

Not quite.

If you’ve seen the headlines claiming we’ve got a teaspoon of plastic in our brains, just remember that media prioritise clicks first and scientific rigour… maybe not at all.

So, I talked to microplastics expert Dr Olga Pantos, to understand what’s actually known at this stage, and what’s clickbait fiction. Because while some claims are exaggerated, the truth is still pretty grim. Plastic is in our water, our food, our air… and yeah, our cells.
Recycling isn’t the solution (though please do keep recycling as it’s all we have for now), ultimately we need to stop with unnecessary plastic.

You can listen to this episode here.

Mā te wā, see you next week.

Brianne.