Talking Rain

Last updated

Talking Rain
Industry Consumer packaged goods
Founded1987
Headquarters,
Key people
  • Ken Sylvia CEO
[1]
ProductsTalking Rain Waters, Sparkling Ice
Number of employees
250-500 [2]
Website www.talkingrain.com
Sparkling Ice design trademark SI Logo Purple Soild Bubbles.png
Sparkling Ice design trademark

Talking Rain is a privately held beverage company based in Preston, Washington that manufactures still and sparkling waters. Sparkling Ice accounts for the majority of their business.

Contents

History

Talking Rain was founded in 1987 [1] by John Stevens and Pete Hiskin in Bellevue, Washington. The company was bought 6 months later by investors Lawrence Hebner, Donald Kline, and Donald Jasper for $300,000. [3] In 1992, the company began production of Sparkling Ice. [4] They also moved to their current location in Preston, Washington that same year.

In 2014, Kevin Durant, the former Oklahoma City Thunder forward, signed an endorsement deal with Sparkling Ice under Roc Nation Sports. [5] [6]

In 2014, 2015, and 2016, the company was recognized in the Inc. 5000 list. [7]

In August 2017, Talking Rain signed a distribution agreement with Tata Global Beverages to distribute Himalayan mineral water in the U.S. [8]

In 2018, Talking Rain launched a rebranded bottle label and changed the Sparkling Ice formula to include colors from natural sources. [9]

Kevin Klock was president and CEO of the company from 2010 to 2017; he left abruptly after alleged accusations of sexual harassment by a former Talking Rain employee. [10] The company told BevNET the case was dismissed. [9] Marcus Smith was interim CEO until April 2018, when Chris Hall took over the position, and Smith became president of the company. [9]

In 2018, at 34th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals, Talking Rain announced a yearlong sponsorship of the NHRA Top Fuel Dragster driven by Leah Pritchett. [11]

In January 2019, company introduced voice skill for Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa for consumers to check Sparking Ice cocktail and mocktail recipes. [12]

According to Nielsen, as of June 15, 2019, Sparkling Ice had about $500 million in annual retail sales with a 14.9% increase in year-to-date dollar sales. [13]

In April 2022, COO Ken Sylvia was promoted to CEO. [14]

Products

In 2006, they launched two more products, Twist and ActivWater, which were produced until 2011, when Talking Rain decided to focus their business on the Sparkling Ice; in 2018, Talking Rain generated $60 million in revenue, up 140% from the year before. In 2013, the beverage represented 95% of the company's sales. [3] [4] [15]

In October 2018, Talking Rain released a caffeinated version of Sparkling Ice. [16]

In May 2020, the company launched an alkaline water, Talking Rain Essentials Hydration Water in collaboration with Waterboys which was relaunched in 2021 as Talking Rain AQA. [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Starbucks</span> American multinational coffeehouse chain

Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1971, and is currently the world's largest coffeehouse chain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anheuser-Busch</span> American brewing company

Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC, is an American brewing company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2008, it has been wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, now the world's largest brewing company, which owns multiple global brands, notably Budweiser, Michelob, Stella Artois, and Beck's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barq's</span> Root beer manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company

Barq's is an American brand of root beer created by Edward Barq and bottled since the beginning of the 20th century. It is owned by the Coca-Cola Company. It was known as "Barq's Famous Olde Tyme Root Beer" until 2012. Some of its formulations contain caffeine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bawls</span> Caffeinated soft drink

Bawls is a non-alcoholic, highly-caffeinated soft drink.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Coca-Cola Company</span> American multinational beverage corporation

The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. It produces Coca-Cola. The drink industry company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. The company's stock is listed on the NYSE and is part of the DJIA and the S&P 500 and S&P 100 indexes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Powerade</span> Sports drink brand

Powerade is a sports drink created and sold by the Coca-Cola Company. Its primary competitor is Gatorade, owned by PepsiCo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sprecher Brewery</span> Craft brewery in Wisconsin, U.S.

Sprecher Brewery is a brewery in Glendale, Wisconsin, U.S. It was founded in 1985 in Milwaukee by Randal Sprecher, and is Milwaukee's first craft brewery since Prohibition. Sprecher produces an assortment of beers, flavored malt beverages, and craft sodas, and it is famous for its root beer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona Beverage Company</span> American beverage producer

Arizona Beverages USA is a producer of many flavors of iced tea, juice cocktails, and energy drinks based in Woodbury, New York. Arizona's first product was made available in 1992, to compete with Snapple. Both companies originated in New York.

Energy Brands, also doing business as Glacéau, is a privately owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company based in Whitestone, Queens, New York, that manufactures and distributes various lines of drinks marketed as enhanced water. Founded in May 1996 by J. Darius Bikoff with an electrolyte enhanced line of water called Smartwater, Energy Brands initially distributed its products to health food stores and independent retailers in the New York area. Adding Fruitwater and Vitaminwater to its line in 1998 and 2000, respectively, the company expanded to nationwide distribution in the early 2000s.

Keurig is a beverage brewing system for home and commercial use. The American company Keurig Dr Pepper manufactures the machines. The main Keurig products are K-Cup pods, which are single-serve coffee containers; other beverage pods; and the proprietary machines that use these pods to make beverages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McKenzie River Corporation</span>

McKenzie River Corporation is a beverage marketing firm based in San Francisco, CA. Founded in 1987 by Joseph Wessinger with the help of his father, Fred Wessinger, the McKenzie River Corporation has launched a number of successful beverage products to the US market.

Cocaine, also known as No Name, is a highly caffeinated energy drink distributed by Redux Beverages. It contains more caffeine than rival energy drinks Red Bull and Rockstar, symbolized by three and a half steer heads on the label. Aside from caffeine, the label claims 750 milligrams of taurine, another common ingredient found in many energy drinks.

Beverages & More Inc., doing business as BevMo!, is an American retail chain focusing on the sale of alcoholic drinks. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of GoPuff, after GoPuff announced the acquisition of BevMo! on November 5, 2020.

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, commonly known as AB InBev, is a Belgian multinational drink and brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium and is the largest brewer in the world. In 2023, the company was ranked 72nd in the Forbes Global 2000. Additionally, AB InBev has a global functional management office in New York City, and regional headquarters in São Paulo, London, St. Louis, Mexico City, Bremen, Johannesburg, and others. It has approximately 630 beer brands in 150 countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Croix Sparkling Water</span> American brand of carbonated water

LaCroix or La Croix is an American brand of sparkling water that originated in La Crosse, Wisconsin, by G. Heileman Brewing Company and is now distributed by National Beverage Corporation. The available flavors include various fruits and fruit blends.

Anheuser-Busch, a wholly owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, is the largest brewing company in the United States, with a market share of 45 percent in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ban on caffeinated alcoholic drinks in the United States</span> November 2010 drinks ban

The 17 November 2010 United States ban on caffeinated alcoholic drinks is a ban which prevents the marketing and distribution of any prepackaged caffeinated alcoholic drink.

Zevia is a Los Angeles based company that produces soft drinks, organic tea, energy drinks, and mixers sweetened with stevia. All Zevia products are zero-calorie, sugar-free, gluten free, vegan, certified kosher, and certified by The Non-GMO Project. In June 2021, Zevia filed to go public with an IPO.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rich Kleiman</span> American businessperson

Rich Kleiman is an American entrepreneur. A native New Yorker, he is Kevin Durant’s longtime agent and later business partner with Durant in 35V. Founded in 2016, 35V incorporates Kleiman and Durant's business entities, including Durant’s personal brand marketing portfolio and on-court contracts, an investment portfolio and the sports business media network Boardroom. Forbes has called Kleiman a visionary with an "established track records in starting companies, investing in emerging brands and in disrupting existing markets."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vita Coco</span> American beverage company

The Vita Coco Company, doing business as simply Vita Coco, is an American beverage company which mainly sells coconut water. The largest brand globally in coconut/plant waters, Vita Coco has operations in 31 countries as of 2016. It is a benefit corporation. The company is owned by All Market Inc.

References

  1. 1 2 "About · Talking Rain". Talking Rain. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  2. "Kevin Klock is out as Talking Rain CEO", Puget Sound Business Journal, March, 10, 2017
  3. 1 2 Strauss, Karsten. "Turning Water Into Cash: The Unlikely Success Of Talking Rain". Forbes. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  4. 1 2 Garnic, Coral (January 21, 2014). "Sparkling ICE's big splash revives TalkingRain". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  5. "KD signs major Roc Nation-negotiated deal". ESPN.com. July 15, 2014. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  6. "Kevin Durant signs with Sparkling Ice". ABC7 San Francisco. July 15, 2014. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  7. "Talking Rain Beverage Company: Number 2711 on the 2016 Inc. 5000". Inc.com. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  8. "Talking Rain, Tata Beverages Strike DSD Alliance". Consumer Goods Technology. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  9. 1 2 3 "Under New CEO, Talking Rain Charts Path to Growth - BevNET.com". BevNET.com. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  10. "CEO of Talking Rain Beverage fired after sexual assault, lawsuit contends", Seattle Times, November 8, 2017
  11. "Sparkling Ice Announces Sponsorship of NHRA Top Fuel Driver Leah Pritchett". BevNET.com. February 26, 2018. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  12. "Sparkling Ice Adds Amazon, Google Voice Skills". www.mediapost.com. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  13. "When The Bubble's Bursting: Inside LaCroix's Decline". BevNET.com. July 15, 2019. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  14. "Talking Rain promotes Sylvia to CEO". www.foodbusinessnews.net. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  15. "Ice on Fire | Seattle Business Magazine". seattlebusinessmag.com. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  16. "Sparkling Ice debuts caffeinated line". BevIndustry. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  17. "Talking Rain Essentials Hydration Water". www.bevindustry.com. Retrieved November 26, 2020.