SOUND, SALIM NAJJAR: Better Bubbles
The global sparkling water industry is valued at $29 billion with the majority of its customers under the age of 35. Given the rise of social media, taste alone is not enough to make it in this category. Brands have to appeal to the customer’s aesthetic with their packaging and branding. Co-Founder Salim Najjar, launched Sound, an organic sparkling water brand that caters to Millennials and Zoomers to provide them with a healthier alternative - no sweeteners and no fillers.
The story of how Sound got started is one that will go down in many books. Fun fact: Sound was originally born back in 2015 and has undergone many iterations as it pertains to its brand name and packaging design. However, the one variable that remained constant was the company’s commitment to taste, formulation, and values.
We first heard about Sound via Erewhon in LA where we tried this magical drink and were immediately hooked by its beautiful packaging. Yes, you can drink Sound without having synesthesia. After numerous posts on Instagram, and creating organic UGC for this wonderful brand, we got connected to its Lebanese co-founder, Salim Najjar. Luckily, we were able to visit the Sound HQ in Venice, LA.
Co-founders Salim Najjar and Tommy Kelly were both mechanical engineers who worked at a nuclear power plant in LA. Salim was born and raised in upstate New York, Hudson Valley, and is first-generation Lebanese. “I grew up between two cultures. Every summer we would visit Lebanon”, says Salim. It is due to Salim’s cultural diversity and upbringing that unique flavor profiles such as cardamom and rose water would be introduced to the formulation of Sound.
Priced at $30 for a case of 12 cans, Sound beverages include a range of caffeine levels to accommodate the various moments a customer wants to incorporate this drink into their life. Sound can be consumed early in the morning, during the day, at parties, or even before bedtime. It has a well-rounded, filling taste with tea and botanical extracts for flavoring. Our personal favorite flavor is grapefruit, lavender & ginger tea as well as tangerine, lemongrass & green tea.
“From the onset, we wanted to use single-source organic extracts and do not use natural flavors.”
What’s wrong with the term natural or artificial flavors? Nothing, other than it is ambiguous by definition and the industry uses the term as an umbrella to include several sub-ingredients without having to disclose what they are. “The cleanest ingredient you can have is an extract. However, when it comes to certain flavors, such as peach, a peach extract might not taste at all like the real peach flavor we all know and love. Due to our commitment to transparency, we had to kill one of our best-selling SKUs, White-tea ginger since we could not get the flavor profile right to match our core values.”
Co-founders, Tommy Kelly (left) and Salim Najjar (right).
The Aha Moment
As a six-year-old company, Sound was born out of Tommy’s love for healthy teas and sparkling bubbles. “Tommy had just bought a soda stream at the time in 2013 and brew up some yerba matte and put it through the soda stream and voila, our first sparkling tea was born. He brought it into work for me to try because he knew that I was a health nut. At the time I had started to invest in a lot of businesses. I tried it and fell in love with the first sip. I told him, what do we need to do to get this going?” says Salim.
Originally launched in 2015 as SodTerra, the company has undergone many packaging iterations and brand reformations to get to where it is today. ”At the time everyone had told us that the name, SodTerra was a bad idea, but we were too stubborn to change it. It wasn’t until we got a lawsuit from DoTERRA that we investigated other naming options and came across Sound. Sound ingredients, sound business, and sounds good.” For those wondering, Red Scout is the agency behind its rebrand that hit the market in March 2021.
SURROUND SOUND SYSTEM
What do you call an event sponsored by Sound? Surround Sound! Unlike traditional beverage brands, Sound’s channels of distribution revolved around corporations. “For the first 5 years, 70% of our sales came from partnering with giant tech companies such as Google and Facebook to stock their employee pantry.” By targeting an aisle that wasn’t crowded, Sound was able to build momentum for its DTC orders.
“We have not spent much money on marketing channels for the past six years. This was due to our corporate channel distribution strategy. All of our marketing has been organic, guerilla-style.” However, one particular partnership that really helped moved the needle was Kelly LeVeque, a celebrity nutritionist. Kelly works with Jessica Alba and Jessica Biel amongst others. “Kelly has posted about Sound on her social media and mentioned Sound on the Today Show. We have found that posts from experts yield the highest orders.” As a result, Sound has built out a network of doctors, and nutritionists to become brand advocates.
The Challenges
Like most companies, COVID has been a challenge for Sound. In addition, co-packing is also always a challenge. “The biggest challenge for any entrepreneur is your own mind. At the end of the day, our version of reality is created by our minds and if you can keep a positive mindset and perspective and have faith that the universe will give you what you need and is always working in your favor, the rest will unfold magically.”
The Advice
A bio-hacker and daily meditator, Salim believes that “your mental state is a direct reflection of your business state.” Sound has raised $3.25 million life to date.
Salim shares his advice with us for those looking to launch a beverage brand:
Always look at the bigger picture and don’t get stuck with tunnel vision.
Approach each challenge as an opportunity to change something about your business.
Publications recommended to check out, BevNet and Indie CPG.
Interested in partnering with Sound for an event or activation? Email us and we will put you in touch. You can also find Sound here and at Erewhon and Wholefoods in LA, Foxtrot is Dallas, Chicago, and DC.
Photo courtesy of Sound.