Interview, Part 2: Iconic Tonics Execs On The Future Of Hemp THC And Functional Beverages
Last month, Iconic Tonics unveiled new hemp THC drinks under the Do It Fluid and Doggy Spritz labels in collaboration with entrepreneur and rapper Snoop Dogg. In part two of our interview, Iconic Tonics CEO and co-founder Evan Eneman and president Jim Baudino touch on the evolving landscape for hemp THC products, including regulatory hurdles and the need for consumer education, as well as the developing market for functional beverages aimed at wellness-oriented consumers.
SND: How are you addressing consumer education to continue growing the audience for hemp-derived THC?
Eneman: It’s a challenge because in retail you really can’t educate a lot. They’re not really focusing on that. So it’s a little bit more incumbent on the brand during samplings. We can also provide education digitally around the brand and the ingredients. But on-premise is really where you get the best opportunity to educate consumers.
Baudino: This is a big part of what we’ve done with the Cannabis Beverage Association and the trade organizations. We’ve focused on education and having a code of conduct for the industry and making sure as you’re talking with your potential customers you emphasize that they should start with lower doses and go slow.
In the on-premise it’s important to have a mixture [of products]. When we say low dose, it’s two to five milligrams, with high dose up to 10 milligram at the retail establishments. What we’re seeing now, it’s the 10 milligram products that are selling in retail, but as more on-premise business happens, that’s going to be the lower dose products and it’s really going to be about the education of the bartenders and the staff, especially at music festivals and other large venues.
SND: What issues will be key to shaping the hemp THC market moving forward?
Eneman: The distribution potential is massive. Hemp has a couple of challenges to overcome. Obviously the Farm Bill loophole, which most people don’t like calling a loophole, is one area that will continue to haunt the industry unless we get some clarity there.
It’s great to see states take the initiative on regulation, but it does create some potential nuance to what the growth will look like. The patchwork of regulation is still a headwind for the category. But we’re hopeful and we’re seeing a lot of positive momentum in certain states, where the supply chains are already there and the controls are already in place.
There’s also going to be some point in time where cannabis and hemp market players need to sit down and have a conversation around what we are advocating for collectively, and how we get the broadest audience understanding of the cannabis plant, inclusive of legal, compliant hemp.
SND: What do you make of the perceived shift away from alcohol towards THC from some consumers?
Eneman: What we’re seeing is very much this mindful consumption focus, which is a great opportunity for consumers to choose their experience, not for us to dictate what it is for them. Hemp is going to play a much bigger role in that going forward. It goes beyond alcohol too. Hemp-based beverages with the formulations that we’re seeing in the market can provide for that tailored experience in a unique way that other beverages don’t.
Baudino: We also want to have all sorts of different functional ingredients, not only positioned in the hemp space. That is the tip of the spear and where the initial opportunity lies. But there are so many other ingredients that are coming into the market and that we want to look at going forward, especially as more consumers are motivated by health and wellness.
In the retail environment, you’re going to start seeing the functional beverage category expand, and then you’re going to get the categorization—low dose, higher dose, a variety of the types of products including seltzers, wine replacements, cider, etc. That really ties into our whole strategy for developing a diverse portfolio.
Tagged : cannabis, Do it Fluid, Iconic Tonics
