KARA GOLDIN, founder, Hint Inc: ‘When I started the brand, frankly, I had no idea that I was starting an entirely new category.’
It’s taken 10 years of hard work, but Kara Goldin now sits at the helm of the fastest growing flavored water brand in the country [according to data from IRI and SPINS].
And while competition has intensified with the entrance of brands such as Owater and Metromint, Hint is by far the number one unsweetened flavored water brand in the market, adds Goldin, who started cutting up fruit and throwing it into pitchers of water to wean herself off soda after the birth of her third child and realized there was nothing like it on the market.
She won’t disclose retail sales of Hint - which has carved out a significant niche in the category with its still and carbonated waters with a ‘hint’ of fruit, natural flavors and nothing else (no sweeteners, preservatives, or colors) - but asked if $50m was in the ball park for 2014 (a guestimate in press reports), she replies: “I will say that it’s more than that.”
She adds: “When I started the brand, frankly, I had no idea that I was starting an entirely new category, I was just looking for a product with no sweeteners in it. Now our goal is to build Hint to be a billion dollar brand.”
Click HERE to read more about Hint.