Business idea: nootropic energy drink

[AlphaTravel]

I don't know whether this would work or not but I'd probably try it out and see what it was like.

Glad to see I'm not the only one who thinks Red Bull tastes like shit, never understood why people drink it. Someone told me Red Bull aren't actually an energy drink company but actually just a marketing and sponsoring company and they stick their name on anything they think will make money and they can market. Don't know how true it is because I never looked into.

 

[defguy]

A student at my alma mater started an energy drink. Blew up, went into the local stores ie all the VALERO's and SHELL gas stations. Its called "Nerd Energy." Its kind of like Redline or Spike as one other poster mentioned, didnt blow up but its making serious cash. the main reason it went viral in my town is because the school newspaper published an article on it, the school pitched in with all its connections to try to blow it the fuck up, makes the school look good if its students are successful entrepreneurs. The thing about NERD, it sucks, mostly caffeine, but great name and cool looking design on the bottle. Make a legit drink kind of like 5 hr energy, shitload of b vitamins and some REAL nootropics like pirecetam and lethecin (sp?) and your good to go. My advice, get a "partner" or two from a local university, leak a press release to student newspaper, and let those business "partners" (preferably marketing students with HUGE pipe dreams who will work for promised future revenues) to bug the shit out of administration and possible investors to push your product.

 

[kosko]

All that said, I'm completely new to this game and open to suggestions from people who have done anything similar before.

I will give the same advice I give you anyone on here with an idea.

You want to start a beverage company?

Go to work for a beverage company.

This way:

1. You will have connections when you break off on your own.

2. You will understand how the biz works.

3. You will know if you love it or hate it on someone else's dime.

THIS.

The real money is working WITH Red Bull.

Tryign to compete with them and grab crumbs is a fools game.

Red Bull IMO is the easiest 'top flight' lifestyle company to connect with. They will throw money and contacts at anybody with a solid idea to help their brand.

Red Bull became massive by basically giving legit pople the green light to use thier name on lifestyle events that we're already taking place (then they moved to create there own after that). They have been good people to me and my homies espeically. These mofos feed me, get my ass drunk, AND pay me.

:worship:

IMO I think your late to the party tho OP. I think trying to crack in about 5-6 years ago would of been prime. At that time a lot of big players will still late and we're throwing a ton of money to scoop up small start ups that had good formulations and then just throwing the branding behind it.

Look for trends that aren't mainstream yet. Then get yourself in position to ride the way up and cash out at the top.

If you have an idea and its already on a mass scale... your too late. Think of something to be the anti-thesis to that trend or find a new emerging one. (i.e. the RVF poster whom had the idea to invest in tattoo removal technology in 5-10 years this will be huge)

 

[Kingp1n]

Look, you guys want an energy drink that is scientifically proven to work?

All that said, I'm completely new to this game and open to suggestions from people who have done anything similar before.

Trying to compete with them and grab crumbs is a fools game.

Red Bull IMO is the easiest 'top flight' lifestyle company to connect with. They will throw money and contacts at anybody with a solid idea to help their brand.

I agree with MikeCF and Koskos... the barriers to entry is ridiculous for the beverage industry. I would try to make sure that the product is different and scientifically proven to work. Then I would approach the big beverage companies and sell/market the idea to them for a licensing and/or royalty fee. and call it a day. Here is a link to get you started. http://www.euromonitor.com/soft-drinks

 

[Eusebius]

It's a good idea. Approach it as only one of the many ideas you have as a budding entrepreneur, sift through them, start small, crash and burn or make some wins, then when you have the experience, cash and connections, you can go for something big like this.

 

[xsplat]

There are some herbs you could throw into your mix that are a real pick me up. Put some Suma, ginseng, rhodiola, and Coq10 in there for an energy drink that is the real deal. It would look like a muddy brown mixture and many would find the taste unpalatable, but you might find a market.

Thanks for the tip about piracetam and choline.

 

[sheesh]

The best nootropics take about weeks of consistent use to notice a difference. (I use piracetam, which needs a solid 14 days to do anything.)

People who buy an energy drink want a quick rush - i.e., 200mg of caffeine and some B vitamins.

Even if you made the best nootropic drink, if it didn't give that rush, it'd fail.

Exactly. Those who really need an effect will go to the scource directly, i.e. buy piracetam, ritalin etc. instead of buying expensive drinks which will contain low concentrations anyway.

I don't see a market for this and I'm sure that many other people have thought about nootropic drinks and have skipped the idea due to medical and legal difficulties.

Besides, in the medical field, there is not much enthusiasm about nootropics anyway. I have tried a few and was not really convinced of its effectiveness.

Imho there's no alternative to sleep and perhaps meditation if you want to improve focus and mental clarity in the long run. But you can't sell that,lol.

 

[xsplat]

The best nootropics take about weeks of consistent use to notice a difference. (I use piracetam, which needs a solid 14 days to do anything.)

People who buy an energy drink want a quick rush - i.e., 200mg of caffeine and some B vitamins.

Even if you made the best nootropic drink, if it didn't give that rush, it'd fail.

Exactly. Those who really need an effect will go to the scource directly, i.e. buy piracetam, ritalin etc. instead of buying expensive drinks which will contain low concentrations anyway.

I don't see a market for this and I'm sure that many other people have thought about nootropic drinks and have skipped the idea due to medical and legal difficulties.

Besides, in the medical field, there is not much enthusiasm about nootropics anyway. I have tried a few and was not really convinced of its effectiveness.

Imho there's no alternative to sleep and perhaps meditation if you want to improve focus and mental clarity in the long run. But you can't sell that,lol.

If you are charismatic and enjoy the role of leader you can make many fortunes selling meditation. And get your dick sucked by groupies in the process.

 

[[email protected]]

Hey guys,

Thinking about doing a test run of a functional beverage idea I had: a ready-to-drink product with the aim of boosting focus/concentration ability in addition to a caffeine kick, using a combo of additional 'nootropic' ingredients e.g. (cito)choline, piracetam, N-acetyl-cysteine, etc. Caffeine content would be similar to a Red Bull.

The marketing/branding would differentiate the product from the current energy drink brands by selling the focus/cognitive gains from the special ingredients (as well as perhaps the general brain healthiness effects). It would be marketed initially to students (better for cramming than Red Bull) and suit-wearing careers (finance, consulting, etc) in big-city markets (currently London, although NYC ideal as well for a launch).

Based on what I've seen in researching the existing competition, I think the functional beverage market is moving toward more specific functions in the short-medium term, e.g. brain health, aphrodisiacs, hangover relief, coconut water, coffee with added aminos to mitigate caffeine jitters, etc.

If you saw something like this on the shelf next to the Red Bulls, would you give it a shot?

All feedback welcome. Thanks guys.

I don't think the -racetams are approved for human consumption in the USA. I'm not sure if they're classified as a drug however. You might have some difficulty if you try to use them in your formula; definately requires research if you're planning on using them.

You have an additional hurdle to conquer even if they are legel.

Every single -racetam I've used takes like fermented donkey rectum. Nothing seems to hide the taste- sweet, bitter, acidic, basic- dosen't matter; fermented donkey rectum. You need to find a way to hide the taste.

 

[thegmanifesto]

Hey guys,

Thinking about doing a test run of a functional beverage idea I had: a ready-to-drink product with the aim of boosting focus/concentration ability in addition to a caffeine kick, using a combo of additional 'nootropic' ingredients e.g. (cito)choline, piracetam, N-acetyl-cysteine, etc. Caffeine content would be similar to a Red Bull.

The marketing/branding would differentiate the product from the current energy drink brands by selling the focus/cognitive gains from the special ingredients (as well as perhaps the general brain healthiness effects). It would be marketed initially to students (better for cramming than Red Bull) and suit-wearing careers (finance, consulting, etc) in big-city markets (currently London, although NYC ideal as well for a launch).

Based on what I've seen in researching the existing competition, I think the functional beverage market is moving toward more specific functions in the short-medium term, e.g. brain health, aphrodisiacs, hangover relief, coconut water, coffee with added aminos to mitigate caffeine jitters, etc.

If you saw something like this on the shelf next to the Red Bulls, would you give it a shot?

All feedback welcome. Thanks guys.

Every get this rolling?

 

[Therapsid]

I like the idea, but bear in mind the FDA will breathe down your throat.

It's only a matter of time before Red Bull/Monster/Rock Star drinks are regulated out of existence. Energy/alcoholic drinks (Four Loko) already have been.

 

[Alpha Mind]

There NeuroSonic, which is pretty gross, and Brain Juice, which lacks direction with regard to marketing efforts but works quite well.

 

[Seth_Rose]

I "discovered" this idea this morning. I searched Google to see if something like this existed and of course there were already products. This thread was even on the first page of Google! Lol

That said, there seem to only be a few of these nootropic drinks out there and they're not accessible to the masses. I still think there is the potential for an energy/cognitive enhancing drink out there. For example, kids who sit around all day doing nothing still drink energy drinks because they're well marketed; why not for this drink?

This is something I'd like to look into further. Feel free to PM me or just post here if you have any additional thoughts

 

[jake1720]

I think someone tried this but the Gov't shut them down. Might want to double check.

 

[Phoenix]

In Japan some convenience stores have a whole fridge cabinet full of colourful little energy drink bottles. From what I can tell they all claim to be full of their own unique magic energy-giving herbs and vitamins etc.

Making an actual nootropic drink, in the era of 'government permission' would of course be illegal, since it would be 'medicine'. Given the price of modafinil, it'd probably be an expensive drink too.