On this episode, we’re joined by BJ McCaslin, the Co-Founder & CEO of Holy! Water, the beverage brand pushing the boundaries of function, combining ketones, nootropics, functional mushrooms, and in some SKUs, THC.
A 20-year beverage veteran who previously built and exited Coco Café to Vita Coco, BJ brings a rare blend of street-level intuition, scientific curiosity, and battle-tested entrepreneurial grit.
We dive deep into commercialization realities, the brutal economics of beverage, and how BJ approaches brand-building like an anthropologist.
We explore the fast-changing C-store landscape and where functional beverages fit in, and what it actually takes to build strong distributor and broker relationships.
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Episode Highlights:
💧 The 15-year journey behind Holy! Water
⚗️ Building a functional beverage with real “feelings”
🧪 Ketones, mushrooms & nootropics
🛠️ The harsh realities of beverage commercialization
🧭 Why brand-building starts with anthropology
🌿 THC vs non-THC SKUs
🚨 How BJ is responding to the potential hemp ban
💊 Vitamins vs painkillers
🏪 Why C-stores are the next frontier for functional drinks
📈 Broker & distributor strategies that actually work
🔭 Trends and brands BJ is watching closely
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Table of Contents:
00:00 - Intro
00:47 - Holy! Water origin story, product evolution
07:17 - Commercialization journey
10:09 - Anthropological approach to brand building
13:41 - Learning on the fly
17:43 - THC vs non-THC SKUs
22:07 - How BJ is reacting to the hemp ban
24:07 - Vitamins vs painkillers
27:41 - The C-store channel
30:51 - The evolution of functional beverages in C-stores
32:38 - Building strong distributor and broker relationships
37:42 - Brand and trends BJ is watching
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Links:
Holy! Water – https://enjoyholywater.com/
Follow BJ on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/bjmccaslin/
Follow Adam on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-martin-steinberg/
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