Sundia sees a juicy opportunity for watermelons
Sundia sees a juicy opportunity for watermelons
If one were to ask the average grocery store shopper for his or her opinions about watermelon, the answer would probably relate to it being a tasty summertime treat.
The Sundia Corp. aims to capitalize on what it sees as a juicy opportunity to change consumers' ideas about watermelons.
Founded just over a year ago and "devoted to providing the premium watermelon experience," the San Francisco-based company has become the first mass-manufacturer of watermelon juice, which it packages in 12- and 64-ounce bottles. While it is currently available only in about 150 retail stores in Northern California, Sundia is poised to distribute its watermelon juice to retailers across the western United States.
"Our watermelon juice will be available at 600 stores within the next two months, and by the spring of 2006, it will be available in most of the western U.S. and pockets of the southern U.S.," said Dan Hoskins, chief operating officer of Sundia, the company he co-founded with Bradford Oberwager, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur.
Mr. Hoskins, the former national director of sales and distribution for Odwalla Inc., said that after the Coca- Cola Corp. purchased Odwalla, it became too mainstream and he wanted to do something different.
"As an entrepreneur, I was passionate about bringing a juice to the market for the first time," he said. That passion would be realized when he was introduced, through mutual friends, to Mr. Oberwager, who had purchased the patent for producing and formulating watermelon juice and had been crafting the formation of the company since early 2004.
"Brad is a successful entrepreneur and I have the experience of bringing produce and perishables to market," he said. "Our business strengths and personalities complement each other."
Sundia's management team also includes James Kairos, its vice president of manufacturing and the former director of operations for Odwalla.
Mr. Hoskins said that the new company's name, a play on "sandia," the Spanish word for watermelon, was chosen after extensive market research. "The 'sun' provides a good visual connotation," he said.
In addition to juice, Mr. Hoskins said that Sundia also offers fresh watermelon year round through three top U.S. watermelon wholesalers: Timco Distributing, whose president Tim Colin originally patented the formula and production method for watermelon juice; Borders Melon Co. Inc.; and Jackson's Farming Co. By 2006, he estimated that nearly 23 percent of the watermelons sold in the United States will carry the "Sundia" label, and with it, the company's "3- Point Certification" guarantee program.
"All of our watermelons have a certain quality, and we guarantee to retailers that customers will love it or they can send the label and their receipt back to us for a refund," he said. "It gives the customer and the retailer that much more confidence in our product as well as giving our watermelon wholesalers a powerful marketing tool."
According to Mr. Hoskins, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has found that watermelon is the "lycopene leader" among all fruits and vegetables. He added that one medium slice of watermelon can have up to 40 percent more lycopene - an antioxidant that may help lower the risk of certain diseases including cancer, heart disease and macular degenerative disease - than the same volume of tomato. Unlike tomatoes, however, the lycopene in watermelon juice is bioavailable, meaning that heat is not required for the body to absorb it.
"We are really pushing watermelon's lycopene content because even health-conscious consumers don't generally associate lycopene with watermelons since all the research that has gotten publicity has used tomatoes as the lycopene source," he said. "Sundia will change this perception. Soon people will know the health benefits of watermelon juice. Lycopene will be on the tips of everyone's tongues over the next few years."
Even though Sundia is relying heavily on lycopene to promote its juice, Mr. Hoskins said that this is not its main focus.
"First and foremost, we want the consumer to know that our juice is great-tasting and that everyone in the family will love it, then we are promoting our health message," he said. "This is unlike other juices, which push health first."
Sundia's watermelon juice is 100 percent natural, 100 percent juice and contains no additives, added sugars, preservatives or colors. While it contains a minimum of 75 percent watermelon juice, Mr. Hoskins said that it is difficult to maintain a consistent, single-strength juice because of watermelon's low-acid content and quick oxidation.
To counter this, Sundia concentrates its juice through a proprietary method, providing for a consistent taste, quality, color and an extended shelf life that retailers appreciate.
"This enables us to deliver consistent sweetness and taste year-round on an as-needed basis, which is a quality that is important to consumers," he said. "Our focus groups were excited about having a taste consistent all year round because at first they were not sure how the taste would be when watermelon is not in season."
While the company is adding new points of distribution on a weekly basis, Mr. Hoskins noted that the response to its juice has been so great that it is already looking into adding to its juice line.
"We are looking into watermelon juice line extensions," he said. "There is a possibility of other fruit blends with watermelon as the base."
The Sundia Corp. aims to capitalize on what it sees as a juicy opportunity to change consumers' ideas about watermelons.
Founded just over a year ago and "devoted to providing the premium watermelon experience," the San Francisco-based company has become the first mass-manufacturer of watermelon juice, which it packages in 12- and 64-ounce bottles. While it is currently available only in about 150 retail stores in Northern California, Sundia is poised to distribute its watermelon juice to retailers across the western United States.
"Our watermelon juice will be available at 600 stores within the next two months, and by the spring of 2006, it will be available in most of the western U.S. and pockets of the southern U.S.," said Dan Hoskins, chief operating officer of Sundia, the company he co-founded with Bradford Oberwager, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur.
Mr. Hoskins, the former national director of sales and distribution for Odwalla Inc., said that after the Coca- Cola Corp. purchased Odwalla, it became too mainstream and he wanted to do something different.
"As an entrepreneur, I was passionate about bringing a juice to the market for the first time," he said. That passion would be realized when he was introduced, through mutual friends, to Mr. Oberwager, who had purchased the patent for producing and formulating watermelon juice and had been crafting the formation of the company since early 2004.
"Brad is a successful entrepreneur and I have the experience of bringing produce and perishables to market," he said. "Our business strengths and personalities complement each other."
Sundia's management team also includes James Kairos, its vice president of manufacturing and the former director of operations for Odwalla.
Mr. Hoskins said that the new company's name, a play on "sandia," the Spanish word for watermelon, was chosen after extensive market research. "The 'sun' provides a good visual connotation," he said.
In addition to juice, Mr. Hoskins said that Sundia also offers fresh watermelon year round through three top U.S. watermelon wholesalers: Timco Distributing, whose president Tim Colin originally patented the formula and production method for watermelon juice; Borders Melon Co. Inc.; and Jackson's Farming Co. By 2006, he estimated that nearly 23 percent of the watermelons sold in the United States will carry the "Sundia" label, and with it, the company's "3- Point Certification" guarantee program.
"All of our watermelons have a certain quality, and we guarantee to retailers that customers will love it or they can send the label and their receipt back to us for a refund," he said. "It gives the customer and the retailer that much more confidence in our product as well as giving our watermelon wholesalers a powerful marketing tool."
According to Mr. Hoskins, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has found that watermelon is the "lycopene leader" among all fruits and vegetables. He added that one medium slice of watermelon can have up to 40 percent more lycopene - an antioxidant that may help lower the risk of certain diseases including cancer, heart disease and macular degenerative disease - than the same volume of tomato. Unlike tomatoes, however, the lycopene in watermelon juice is bioavailable, meaning that heat is not required for the body to absorb it.
"We are really pushing watermelon's lycopene content because even health-conscious consumers don't generally associate lycopene with watermelons since all the research that has gotten publicity has used tomatoes as the lycopene source," he said. "Sundia will change this perception. Soon people will know the health benefits of watermelon juice. Lycopene will be on the tips of everyone's tongues over the next few years."
Even though Sundia is relying heavily on lycopene to promote its juice, Mr. Hoskins said that this is not its main focus.
"First and foremost, we want the consumer to know that our juice is great-tasting and that everyone in the family will love it, then we are promoting our health message," he said. "This is unlike other juices, which push health first."
Sundia's watermelon juice is 100 percent natural, 100 percent juice and contains no additives, added sugars, preservatives or colors. While it contains a minimum of 75 percent watermelon juice, Mr. Hoskins said that it is difficult to maintain a consistent, single-strength juice because of watermelon's low-acid content and quick oxidation.
To counter this, Sundia concentrates its juice through a proprietary method, providing for a consistent taste, quality, color and an extended shelf life that retailers appreciate.
"This enables us to deliver consistent sweetness and taste year-round on an as-needed basis, which is a quality that is important to consumers," he said. "Our focus groups were excited about having a taste consistent all year round because at first they were not sure how the taste would be when watermelon is not in season."
While the company is adding new points of distribution on a weekly basis, Mr. Hoskins noted that the response to its juice has been so great that it is already looking into adding to its juice line.
"We are looking into watermelon juice line extensions," he said. "There is a possibility of other fruit blends with watermelon as the base."
