I met with Jerry at his offices with two of my fellow investors. I didn't ask the detailed financial questions I was going to ask since the audit should be released within the month. This is what I got out of the meeting:
1. Currently, there are the 4 drinks we all know about and 21 distributors.
2. The smaller the distributor, the better; he won't try to get Anheuser-Busch on board.
3. The target market is 18-25 year olds. He is trying to get the drinks into bars, C-stores, etc.
4. The products are available via WalMart.Com (http://www.walmart.com/search/?query=rocky%20mountain%20high%20drink&cat_id=976759_976782) When I mentioned concerns that Wal Mart would probably balk at the hemp leaf, he said he would not be changing it for anyone.
5. We discussed Chillo and what it meant to the current plan. He said Chillo was a test and it worked. he didn't want to use someone else's product for his company. They used that same plan to build an infrastructure which is what they have now and are building on it daily.
6. As to the name, he said people thought that John Denver owned that name. He didn't. He was very lucky to get that trademark and his target demographic doesn't know who John Denver is anyway.
7. We discussed advertising and noted that Monster and Red Bull had limited television advertising. Jerry said that TV is not what he is aiming for; social media is the target nowadays.
8. I asked if it was worldwide yet and he said he was not at liberty to discuss it.
9. We discussed his co-packer. He said his co-packer is the same one that handles Mikes Hard Cider and Rockstar. They are capable of 70 million bottles (a month?) but is only currently producing 20 million so they have plenty of capacity still available. He said he has no desire to have his own plant; he would rather not deal with the problems inherent in such a venture.
10. We had the pleasure of taste-testing the four alcoholic drinks; Margarita, Sex on the Beach, Tequila Sunrise and Apple Cinnamon. All three were fantastic and though my first impression from the Apple Cinnamon was "Fireball", it did NOT have the super strong taste and was very pleasant. All four are under 12% ABV and are wine based.
11. He had a large supply of shirts and coozies and we left with a few.
12. As a motorcycle rider, I mentioned the bike rallies that are held around the nation and for him to consider a presence there. Red Bull and Rockstar hand out many samples at the Sturgis Rally for marketing. He gave me a 12 pack which I plan on distributing at a local biker hangout, with the permission of the owner.
Suffice it to say, I had a good impression from the meeting and, taking Jerry at face value, I feel things are, indeed, going to be very good for investors in the near future.
1. Currently, there are the 4 drinks we all know about and 21 distributors.
2. The smaller the distributor, the better; he won't try to get Anheuser-Busch on board.
3. The target market is 18-25 year olds. He is trying to get the drinks into bars, C-stores, etc.
4. The products are available via WalMart.Com (http://www.walmart.com/search/?query=rocky%20mountain%20high%20drink&cat_id=976759_976782) When I mentioned concerns that Wal Mart would probably balk at the hemp leaf, he said he would not be changing it for anyone.
5. We discussed Chillo and what it meant to the current plan. He said Chillo was a test and it worked. he didn't want to use someone else's product for his company. They used that same plan to build an infrastructure which is what they have now and are building on it daily.
6. As to the name, he said people thought that John Denver owned that name. He didn't. He was very lucky to get that trademark and his target demographic doesn't know who John Denver is anyway.
7. We discussed advertising and noted that Monster and Red Bull had limited television advertising. Jerry said that TV is not what he is aiming for; social media is the target nowadays.
8. I asked if it was worldwide yet and he said he was not at liberty to discuss it.
9. We discussed his co-packer. He said his co-packer is the same one that handles Mikes Hard Cider and Rockstar. They are capable of 70 million bottles (a month?) but is only currently producing 20 million so they have plenty of capacity still available. He said he has no desire to have his own plant; he would rather not deal with the problems inherent in such a venture.
10. We had the pleasure of taste-testing the four alcoholic drinks; Margarita, Sex on the Beach, Tequila Sunrise and Apple Cinnamon. All three were fantastic and though my first impression from the Apple Cinnamon was "Fireball", it did NOT have the super strong taste and was very pleasant. All four are under 12% ABV and are wine based.
11. He had a large supply of shirts and coozies and we left with a few.
12. As a motorcycle rider, I mentioned the bike rallies that are held around the nation and for him to consider a presence there. Red Bull and Rockstar hand out many samples at the Sturgis Rally for marketing. He gave me a 12 pack which I plan on distributing at a local biker hangout, with the permission of the owner.
Suffice it to say, I had a good impression from the meeting and, taking Jerry at face value, I feel things are, indeed, going to be very good for investors in the near future.
