Festico
Festico is a Lincoln based start-up alcohol brand that has created two hard seltzer drink products specifically targeting the UK market.
The company has been founded by Law and International Business & Marketing graduate Tommy Atkins (2021) and his business partner Charlie Cheyette.
Hard seltzers are an American- style drink that tastes very much like sparkling water. Tommy and Charlie spent twelve months undertaking extensive market research to test out their assumptions that the sparkling water flavour enjoyed by the American market was not right or the UK one. They ran numerous blind tasting comparisons with focus groups where participants were asked to score their taste preferences between the American and UK hard seltzer flavours. The test results were conclusive with 87.5% of participants preferring the Festico flavours over five other leading American hard seltzer brands.
The drinks are all gluten-free and suitable for vegans. Festico’s environmental credentials are also strong as they pledge that for every can of drink sold, two wildflowers are planted to support the long-term sustainability of the bee ecosystem.
Festico has now successfully launched two distinct flavours to the UK market: Sour Apple and Tropical. They are currently stocked in around 15 retail locations within the city of Lincoln, including all four of the University’s bars. Their next step is to expand into Sheffield by the summer of 2023 and after that, nationally.