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One of our priorities here at ThereSanDiego is to tell the stories of the innovative people who are influencing what we eat, drink, see and do here in San Diego as we head into the new year. and do more work.
I was lucky enough to spend a few minutes with Lyda Hanson, co-founder of Suntide Mimosa, who runs a burgeoning new business out of Encinitas.
The interview is shared with little editing to preserve the casual, conversational tone we had.
Meet Lida Hanson, co-founder of Suntide Mimosas
There San Diego: Hi, I’m Lida. How are you?
Lida: I’m fine, Mike. Have you been well?
There San Diego: I am okay. Thank you very much. Thanks for joining us here. I appreciate it
Lida: I am happy to be here.
There San Diego: very good. Well, we’re here to share a little bit of your story about founding Suntide and what the brand and business are with our community and want to learn a little more about your story.
Let’s start with the fact that you and your brothers co-founded Suntide. Tell us a little bit about that and how you decided to start this business.
Lida: I first came up with this idea during my senior year at Berkeley and realized there was such a gap in the RTD (Ready to Drink) market. I had this thought…and quarantine happened. That’s when I decided to see the feasibility of this whole thing. Just to see if it actually does this.
At this point I am the only one who has done this and that I have contacted all these trade and bulk wine suppliers and all these different vendors and everyone I know in the beverage industry or who has started a company I was like….” Here’s what I think. This is what I want to do”….”Is this possible? This is a good idea.”
Simply put, I got in touch with a guy who had a lot of experience in the beverage industry and was doing consulting for these beverage entrepreneurs. He had the luxury of being a bit picky about who he wanted to work with.
I suggested the idea to him. He said, “This has really, really serious potential. Now is the time. Don’t tell anyone else about this.”
That’s when we decided to take it more seriously. At that point my brothers were seniors at Stanford University and they were very excited about the idea as well. So we all got together and brought this thing to life.
there san diego: And it sounds like it’s working. That’s not always the case when working with family.
Lida: It’s cool to work with them. I have always seen them as my brothers, but now they are my colleagues too. Family can be interesting. But I was able to see what they bring as professionals and really understand their skill sets. It means that there is So it was really good.
there san diego: Yeah, that’s cool. If I remember correctly, you guys are athletes, right? So some good competitive sibling rivalry, I’m sure.
Lida: I ran a horse race. they played water polo. They played water polo for most of their college career and all of their younger years. So yeah, they’ve been athletes for a very long time.
there san diego: Bringing a competitive edge to your business is a good thing. Suntide is the first product you have on the market that I know of at least, right? Ready-to-drink canned mimosas. why mimosas? Is this just like personal preference?
Lida: Mimosa is lighter than beer, so I’ve always liked it. To be honest, I’m not a big beer fan. They taste better than seltzer and sometimes you don’t want to drink them like tequila cocktails.There are a lot of his RTD beverages out there right now, including canned cocktails, which are very good. But they are very nice, well balanced, easy to drink, low key kind of drinks that I think fit my personal lifestyle.
We’re always joking like we’re building this brand for ourselves and our friends, right? What do we like, what would you like to see on the shelf? What brand identity do we perceive? It’s been a cool process. But yeah, answering your question is a personal favorite.
It’s always funny to hear, “Hey, do you like mimosas?” Everyone always says yes.
there san diego: I think everyone loves mimosas! I mean, I’m pretty surprised that there’s a gap in the market. At least you found something I haven’t seen other than you guys. And everyone’s favorite drink, right? So a great choice!
Lida: Yeah, it’s cool because people know what it is. But people, for the most part, know what a mimosa is. Because people know what to expect. Consumers don’t need to be educated much about what they’re drinking.
there san diego: right. it’s a classic.
Lida: Like Lunch Waters now.
there san diego: I know what ranch water is. It’s a drink that makes me look and clarify on my face… what I want. And what makes one bartender completely different than another. Yeah, there’s a lot more education to do on that sort of thing. So you got a head start. good for you
I think Southern California is a great place for your industry when it comes to brands and lifestyle. There are so many beverage companies in the industry. I think you’ve probably found the community here to be very close-knit and supportive. What is?
Lida: I’m from Northern California, I was born and raised and spent most of my life in California. Coming here since February, what I’ve found is that everyone is working on something cool and creative. Like everyone has cool hobbies. So I think there’s a community that’s like, ‘I support you and your cool hobbies, what you do, your business, or whatever it is’. is what i’m learning.
I remember having this launch party, but I didn’t know there were that many people here, so it’s not like pulling directly on the network itself. We just want people to join us and see what we’re doing so they can enjoy the product and what we were doing even if they weren’t there for us. It was so cool to see them in. They just wanted to see what was going on. So I think it’s a really creative community and people are just interested in trying new things. I think it’s a great place.
there san diego: Great place…especially in Encinitas?
Lida; yeah yeah.
there san diego: I had an office there for a few years and it’s a very creative community and like you said, everyone there seems to be working on something. We have some kind of side project, some kind of business, or some kind of creative outlet, and I think that’s what makes it a unique community.
Obviously, it’s famous for Southern California’s surf culture. But I discovered that it has this greater culture and energy. It’s not just surf culture, it’s Southern California culture that’s full of style and creativity. So it seems like the perfect place for you to land.
Lida:yes. I came here remembering my birthday last year and just fell in love. I’m kind of here, this is where we need to be.
there san diego: What’s not to love? It is amazing. So we started this when the pandemic was going on and now you guys are there. You’re out in the store, you’re out in retail. Not just here in Southern California, but elsewhere, I guess? Please let me know how it goes.
Lida: Well, I think we’re in 14 states now, and it’s going really well. It’s been my dream to start my own thing, so it’s very cool. Just ask your high school friends. Before that, I had always wanted to start something of my own. I was thinking of doing that and it’s working really well. We are growing at a really great pace.
One of my favorite parts is being able to do these tastings from time to time and really interacting with the consumer and having them actually try it in front of us and being involved in their reaction and giving them I think it’s a good thing to see. People really like great products. We put a lot of time, energy and love into this from day one. It’s so good when you have a product that you’re really proud of. Did not resolve.
there san diego: Yeah, I can vouch for that. I recently went to Idyllwild – I love climbing mountains and relaxing – and I took your product with me. I love it.
So 14 states. We’re only talking a few years here. It should be a pretty wild ride… it can be overwhelming at times. Have you ever felt like you were going too fast in this process? ? Or are there any particular challenges you encountered in making this happen that surprised you?
Lida: Yeah, I think it’s been on the shelves since January. we haven’t been out for a long time. We’ve had a lot of success in terms of recruiting distributors, which is great, but I think learning how to scale comfortably is something we’re all thinking about how to do. I think. Fortunately, so far there have been no major challenges. This is really lucky.
there san diego: That is wonderful. You don’t hear that very often when it comes to fast-growing startups.
Lida: That’s right, that’s right. It was pretty positive… knock on wood. I literally bang on wood because I don’t want to jinx anything. Of course, things happen, but no big deal.
there san diego: That’s amazing. Well, let’s just leave it at that.
Lida: Working with family can be hard. we are learning how. But I think we have it all together. We are very well put together here. I was happy
there san diego: that’s good. So what’s next? You’re currently in 14 states, and you said you’ve only been distributing for about a year. What’s next for you guys?
Lida: Recently, the final flavor we’re working on got approved. We are kept secret for now. It took us a really long time to get to where we wanted to go, but in the end we decided it was okay. I think it’s wonderful. My two brothers and my mother and I are tasting.
we’re excited about that. What’s so cool is that we’re in the early stages of development of this whole thing, so there’s so much you can do with it.
there san diego: that’s cool. So, is there anything about your business or what’s going on that you’d like to share with our community?
Lida: But I really appreciate the people who go out and support me. I hope they know and feel that. We really appreciate the opportunity to be in front of our consumers and hope they enjoy our products.
there san diego: Well, San Diego is great at supporting local brands and local entrepreneurs, so I’m sure you’ll get a lot of love and you’ll feel it too. Where will people find your product? What’s the best spot?
Where to get Suntide Mimosa
Lida: We are all over San Diego. The best way to figure it out is to use our website’s store locator. In fact, I update it almost every week, so the content is also changing. If you don’t see it at your local liquor store, be careful. we are working on it.
there san diego: How nice. Also, what is your website URL?
Lida: www.drinksuntide.com.
there san diego: Thank you again for joining us. I appreciate it Thank you for sharing your story with our community. Thank you for your continued support. It’s a really, really cool story and we’re so happy for your success.
Lida: Thank you very much. I’m honoured to be able to meet you.
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