1: Surfside Iced Tea
Our first brand breakdown and prediction will focus on Stateside Vodka's Surfside Iced Tea + Vodka drink.
Background
Stateside Vodka was founded in 2013 by brothers Matt and Bryan Quigley.
Stateside Vodka produced a great product from the inception of their company, and their Vodka was PA’s top selling craft spirit at one point.
However, as recently as 2022 (!) they changed the landscape of beverage and alcohol brands forever with the introduction of Surfside iced-tea + vodka drinks.
Surfside is offered in the following flavors: regular iced tea + vodka, lemonade + iced tea +vodka, raspberry iced tea + vodka, peach iced tea + vodka, green tea + vodka, lemonade + vodka, raspberry lemonade + vodka, black cherry lemonade + vodka, strawberry lemonade + vodka. With green tea extensions coming down the pipeline.
Let’s breakdown the brand and predict their future in the space.
1. The Brand
Name: The name Surfside is phenomenal. It evokes emotion and puts the consumer into a place where they can picture themselves drinking a can within a specific setting.
To us, Surfside gives Kona Big Wave vibes, but less Hawaii and more beach town USA. Kona has done a really nice job in bringing that vibe to “the mainland” and gaining customer attention at bars and restaurants that are FAR from Hawaii. They are selling the state of mind, and we think Surfside is entering into that territory as well, better than anyone else currently.
Surfside is memorable and has alliteration which we are always fans of when it comes to brand names.
One negative note, is that the name can come off as too seasonal, as not much of the country is surfing in the winter. But Surfside seems to have the same “it” factor going for them as Corona. That factor is association to the summer season and not being stuck in the summer season. When we think stuck in the summer season we think of seasonal beers (Leinenkugel Summer Shandy anyone?).
We don’t see that with the Surfside brand. If you are familiar with “Red October” in Philadelphia, you know Surfside is far from a summer-only beverage.
Packaging : A beautiful can in every sense of the word.
The color scheme is soft and inviting, yet still eye-catching. The color pattern on the bottom is really a nice touch that was pretty unique when it was first introduced. In a world of symmetry and perfection, this set a really cool tone for a brand being themselves but not going overboard.
The choice to make this a skinny can seems like a no-brainer at this point, but remember Truly was in bottles to start, and Happy Dad is proud of their standard can. Not every brand does it. The sleek can lends itself to female drinkers and fits the trend that Michelob Ultra started with “healthier for you options” coming in that vessel.
The 4 pack carton is appealing. It is clean, in order to stay on brand, and highlights *ZERO BUBBLES* which is an important distinction for today’s consumer. Zero Bubbles is a pivotal differentiator in winning over consumers from Twisted Tea and other hard teas. Listing the 100 cals seems to be a choice that coincides with their target market.
One curious point to us, is that the can lists sugars on the front of the package. Our thought process is that if sugars are any more than zero, then it is not worth it to highlight them. However, an argument can be made for this market segment, that 2 grams of sugar is important to list for the distinction against the aforementioned Twisted Tea. TT has 23 grams of sugar in its original flavor. It is clearly less and then any malt-based tea product and that is important to highlight in this case.
Picture via https://www.drinksurfside.com/flavors/
Feel: The feel of the Surfside brand is what brings everything together and keeps the consumer coming back.
The combination of clean packaging, soft colors and round fonts evoke a response before you taste it. Adding the sun on every can and carton brings this to another level and distinctly ties the product to specific times and places in a drinker’s life.
2. Marketing
Social: “@drinksurfside” is average as far as handles go. But, their Instagram page (where it seems they focus most of their attention) is far from average.
The brand does a really nice job of integrating professional photos alongside user generated content. Along their grid and their story you will find the same settings that you see their product in the most - beaches, sporting events, outdoors, etc. The page is bright and colorful, and really fun.
It seems like they are starting to bring partnerships into the fold and are highlighting them nicely on the page.
They have done a few giveaways which elicit an impressive response from followers. Their latest (posted at the end of January) has more than 7000 comments and more than 6000 likes. This is to win a cooler, koozies, and a gift card. This is a great giveaway but by no means the best we have ever seen. As we see like most other things in the Surfside world right now….it doesn’t really matter. They could probably giveaway a single Surfside t shirt and get more comments and likes than most other bev-alc companies out there. It is truly on fire in every aspect, and they are using their social channels to prove that, and to keep the fire burning.
Out-of-home marketing :
One of the best billboards that we have ever seen comes from the Surfside team this past summer (2024). For anyone that visits the South Jersey shore points from Eastern PA, you might have seen it as well. This particular billboard was a giant display positioned at the end of the AC expressway before drivers got off the exit to head to your favorite shore point on the Garden St. Parkway. It was a thing of beauty. It was as if Surfside was welcoming drivers to the Jersey Shore. Surfside was letting you know that they are waiting for you once you park your car for the weekend and start to indulge. Who better to welcome beachgoers to the jersey shore, than Surfside?
Other billboards throughout the region were certainly eye-catching and effective, but that one was perfectly executed.
In addition to billboards, if you watched a Phillies game this past season you got a taste of Surfside’s incredible branding and marketing. The outfield wall was caught in camera during every home run to center field, and much more throughout the game. The branding was on-point and large enough to be perfectly legible from the cameras behind home plate.
The brand can seamlessly transition from a stadium to a beach, to a local establishment. It is so impressive. The only other brands we see doing it as well as Surfside are national players that have been at it for decades.
Speaking of local establishments… Surfside does a really nice job at bars, restaurants, and liquor stores.
The branding remains consistent, and consistency is key.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a Surfside sign at your local dive where it is dark and dingy. But, if you are attending a party along the shoreline or at a bar with a dance floor full of 21-25 year olds, you can bet that you will see some Surfside branding.
Umbrellas, faux surfboards, bar mats, table tents, etc. all of their merch items are completed with great detail. They are super clean, follow the same color scheme as their packaging, and are always in the right locations.
3. Sales
Unless you have been living under a rock, you can probably guess what Surfside sales have looked like from 2023-2025. Think rocket ship.
Brad Japhe wrote about the Surfside brand for Forbes last year and pointed to the startling growth numbers. The brand grew 563% from 2022 to 2023 and went from 200,000 cases in 2022 to 1.3 million cases in 2023. When a brand hits a million cases - it is a milestone. When a brand hits a million cases in it’s second year? It is a monster. They were doing all of this in a concentrated footprint and with limited team members.
The numbers are nothing short of amazing, and 2024 saw Surfside expand to 48 states and multiple MLB stadiums. They were the number 1 selling item in Citizens Bank Park this past Phillies season.
On-premise consumption is the key here for Surfside as far as we are concerned. Any brand that can dictate 25-50 case orders per week for bars and restaurants of all types is doing something extraordinary. Brands that can live, grow, and excel in the on-premise have a path to becoming worth millions (or billions) of dollars. Especially when a single can costs anywhere from $7-$11 dollars per.
4. Product
Our take is that you can have the greatest marketing campaigns, PR, and events in the world…but if the product fails the taste test than eventually it will come to light and fall flat on its face.
This is not the case for Surfside. The product is delicious. Maybe the 2 grams of sugars hold it back from being a perfect drink, but with the removal of sugar we presume the flavor and taste changes.
5. Future
Let’s look at the future and where we see Stateside and the Surfside brand going.
A few key factors in how we predict a brand’s future are as follows:
On-premise consumption
Brand loyalty
Competition
As far on-premise consumption goes, Surfside is in an extraordinary position. They have combatted all challenges when entering the bar or restaurants space.
Why wouldn’t customers just get a vodka and iced-tea mixed drink?
Who will pay $9 for something low ABV in a 12oz can?
Why would a bar owner not just pour vodka and iced-tea and make better margins?
Customers spending religiously on Surfside cans answer all of these questions at once.
For brand loyalty we look at consumer preference in the retail space.
Do new national brands or cool local brands cut into Surfside sales?
Does a less expensive product at retail mean Surfside suffers?
The answers to both of those questions in short, is no.
It does not seem to matter if a retailer has “cooler” or hipper products, less expensive products, or a combination of the two, Surfside drinkers seem loyal (almost to a fault) where they will pay the extra dollar for the drink.
Competition - we always look at competition through a couple of different scopes.
First, we see loads of brands attempting to come into the RTD tea space, some successfully, most unsuccessfully. When competitors begin to come forth the landscape takes shape quickly. We find winners, losers, and brands that are completely missing the mark. In this case, we are finding loads of brands following Surfside’s playbook. That’s a win for Surfside because no one will be able to do it as well as they are.
We also look at competition to see is anyone is able to dethrone or even take a bite out a brand like Surfside. Up to this point it seems to be a non-factor across most retailers in the Mid-Atlantic region. Of course, competitors will have sales numbers to show, but to us it is quite simple - if all other brands, beside Surfside, seize to exist retailers would be totally fine. However, if Surfside shut down operations tomorrow, retailers would be in for a world of change. That is how you stomp out the competition. Whether it be intentional, or by organic growth - retailers will have a hard time living without Surfside for the foreseeable future.
Where could it go wrong?
Where could it go wrong?
We think if this goes south it is because of 2 factors.
Brand extensions- it feels like they are going a bit too fast and adding too many brand extensions to an already supremely strong stable of flavors. RTD magazine writes about the new Green Tea Pack with 4 variations of the green tea + vodka drinks. We see this as a bit of misstep because this was assuredly become some new consumer’s intro product to the brand portfolio, and it is not what the brand was built on. The brand was built on the classic iced-tea, and lemonade iced-tea. This feels like an extension for the sake of extension and that can get dangerous.
Too much focus on the Vodka + soda drinks - we have not talked about them, but Stateside Vodka + soda drinks have been a huge part of Stateside’s business. They are part of the growing hard seltzer category, and they are on the right side of the malt vs vodka debate in that they are made with Stateside Vodka. In growing the brand and pushing the soda products, they could lose focus of the darling that is Surfside. The hard seltzer market is much more competitive, and market leader, High Noon, does not seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Especially with the Gallo backing, and Barstool support. To us, why fight that fight? Are we saying cut vodka + soda in it’s entirety and focus solely on Surfside…well, kind of. It is drastic and seems silly but the legs and potential of Surfside should not be taken for granted.
Final thoughts:
We keep hearing competitors and other folks in the market say that Surfside will slow down, or crash, or not withstand the growth.
Yes, 563% growth will be hard to sustain, but to us this brand will live and thrive for the foreseeable future. It won’t crash or extinguish all together.
Ultimately, we are as impressed with the Surfside as anyone out there. Watching the brand thrive and grow up-close has been exciting to see. We do not think this is a flash in the pan, rather a strong foundation being built for a category that is just getting started. They are sort of creating it as they go, and that is a good place to be. It reminds us of craft beer pioneers like Sierra Nevada or Boston Beer. There is no playbook, so they have to make it themselves, and that is frightening yet exciting.
We think Surfside will be around for years to come and will continue being successful. We predict national success, a lucrative exit, and a world-class brand for the 15-20 years.