Olivia Culpo and VIDE launch all-natural spiked seltzer

Olivia Culpo, VIDE Creative Director and Investor & Ryan Laverty, VIDE Co-Founder and CEO, join Yahoo Finance Live to discuss the launch of the new VIDE product and competition in the spiked seltzer space.

Video transcript

KRSTIN MYERS: Well, the canned cocktail company VIDE is launching new products involving tequila. We're joined now by Olivia Culpo, VIDE's creative director and investor, and Ryan Laverty, VIDE's co-founder and CEO. Thank you both for joining us today. So, Ryan, I want to start with you, VIDE launching cocktails now with tequila, which makes someone like me happy because I'm not a vodka drinker-- I'm a tequila drinker. Why did you feel the need for this addition, besides making folks like me incredibly happy when we go to the grocery stores?

RYAN LAVERTY: Yeah, I think it was kind of just a natural next step for us. Myself being a tequila drinker primarily, I was very excited about this line addition. The tequila market in general, just from a growth perspective has been exponential, even on the RTD side. So we're really excited to broaden the audience and the customer base for VIDE. We didn't want to just alienate to only people who were vodka-based drinkers. So, super excited about these two new tequila sodas.

KRSTIN MYERS: All right, and Olivia, you're VIDE's creative director. Talk to us about the new campaign Revitalize and positioning VIDE as one where wellness, the environment are so important.

OLIVIA CULPO: Yeah, it really does kind of meet in the middle there. I think you should speak a little bit more about Revitalize. I mean, this was, in a sense, your idea.

RYAN LAVERTY: Well, I guess primarily. But yeah, Revitalize, it's really a self awareness campaign. I think something that's really unique about our brand and our product is, you know, we made these products for people like us, people that were looking for transparency and quality and just making more self-aware decisions. So the campaign is really focused on that and kind of convincing our consumers and people who aren't even our consumers to evaluate things that they do on a daily basis and see how they can make small improvements in their lives to do things better. So, you know, everyone's going to have a different version of revitalizing, if you will. It might be working out more or calling your parents more or whatever it may be.

But for VIDE, our version is carbon neutrality. We just partnered up with a really cool non-profit company. It's called Climate Neutral. We've been working with them for the past month or so to measure the business's entire carbon footprint. So, over the next few months, we'll be offsetting those via donations to projects that support reforestation and wind and solar and beach cleanup. So I think it's a really special angle on the space. It means a lot to us as, you know, the brand founders and owners who are really excited to kick this off.

KRSTIN MYERS: And of course, Olivia, you're a huge influencer yourself. Why did you want to partner your brand, the Olivia Culpo brand, with that of VIDE?

OLIVIA CULPO: It was a really organic progression, which is so important these days. I think as creative director, I always say that everything has to be organic and natural. And for me, on the Revitalize campaign, for example, the sustainability angle, not only as far as global warming goes or climate change, but also as far as health and wellness and wanting to be able to have fun, wanting to be able to go out and live your best life and not wanting to wake up the next day with maybe that even moral hangover that you made really terrible decisions for your body and you had something that was really caloric.

And with VIDE, you know that you're getting real spirits. You're getting real vodka, real tequila, and 99 calories, zero sugar, zero carbs. For somebody-- I just think for the modern person who is trying to live a more sustainable life in every facet, those things are really important because when you feel better, you're going to do better. And I can speak to that with VIDE 100%. You drink this, you feel better.

KRSTIN MYERS: All right, Ryan, I want to ask you because so many big beverage companies have gotten into the spiked seltzer space, how does VIDE continue to compete against them?

RYAN LAVERTY: The market is getting supersaturated. I think, you know, competition isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think it's a good sign when these global brands are starting to put out products in our space. It means that there is growth in the category and that consumers are wanting more products like these. So, to me, it's a good sign. It's helping the overall category grow in general. I think with our angle, being a little bit more health conscious, having more of that lifestyle type brand, and having the angle from a sustainability perspective I think really sets us apart. So, you know, we're excited to grow. Obviously, the category is growing. So I think we're in a really good spot.

KRSTIN MYERS: And Olivia, last one to you, just a little bit more broader than VIDE, as I had mentioned, obviously, you are a huge influencer. I'm curious to know how much the pandemic has really changed that sector and that industry, especially as we see social media changing algorithms almost on a near daily basis.

OLIVIA CULPO: I know. Honestly, it's hard to keep up with. There's definitely a flow that you have to feel comfortable going with because, obviously, you're not in charge of the algorithm. This was a really horrible year for so many people. There was so much to not only take into account while influencing, so to speak, but also just reflecting on your own life and what you want to be out there championing. So I would say this was a year of real self reflection.

And all in all, like I said before, I think with social media and even the term influencing, it's such a weird word that we coined, but you just have to be authentic. You have to be passionate about the things that you love. And if that authenticity is there, you're going to come out on top. So, for me, that's pretty much always been the cornerstone of what I do. I just feel like when I love things, it's very natural for me to just talk about it.

And, you know, I'm that girl that just tells you all their favorite things. So I feel like I'm in the right business. The pandemic was very unfortunate, but I wasn't really-- honestly, I was not thinking about my business, so to speak, because the world was-- there were just so many bigger issues. But that's my personal thought on it.

KRSTIN MYERS: No, absolutely. I think authenticity is absolutely key. Definitely a great and worthwhile reminder. Olivia Culpo, VIDE creative director and investor, Ryan Laverty, co-founder and CEO of VIBE, thank you both for joining us today.