Taste Radio

On March 12, 2020, a hard coffee brand called Bomani Cold Buzz announced its official debut. The timing of the launch was seemingly unfortunate: one day prior, the Covid-19 pandemic upended American society and prompted lockdowns across the country. Yet while the months ahead were exceptionally challenging for most food and beverage startups, Bomani persevered. The brand landed distribution at over 1,000 retail stores including those of Total Wine, Stater Bros., Whole Foods and Gelson's, built a dynamic e-commerce business and secured a $3.5 million round of capital in December.  How, in a year of turmoil, did Bomani get off to a hot start? In an interview included in this episode, we spoke with co-founders Sam Madani, Amin Anjedani and Kai Drewry who explained how preparation, planning and purpose gave the company a foundation for success, why aggressive cold-calling was critical to finding the right suppliers and service providers, their thoughtful approach to surveys and focus groups and how they convinced