As Jones Soda goes flat, Preston-based TalkingRain bubbles
Sep 25, 2012, 12:28 PM | Updated: Sep 26, 2012, 5:33 am
Preston-based TalkingRain has gone from roughly $10 million to more than $100 million in sales over the past 18 months and struggles to keep up with demand, in part due to the popularity of their Sparkling Ice beverage. (Photo: TalkingRain)
(Photo: TalkingRain)
As Seattle-based Jones Soda goes flat, another Northwest beverage company struggles to keep up with demand amid unprecedented growth.
Preston-based TalkingRain has reason to celebrate its 25th anniversary this year, as sales have jumped from roughly $10 million to $100 million over the past 18 months.
“We pinch ourselves every day,” said TalkingRain President Kevin Klock.
The success has been driven by the popularity of their Sparkling Ice drink, which hit the national market in 2010. A zero-calorie, lightly-sweetened sparkling beverage, it can now be found in every major retailer across the United States.
In May, Sparkling ICE hit nearly $56 million in sales, up from $13 million the previous month, according to data provided by the company.
“The consumer has been looking for something to go to that’s not soda and we seem to have hit a mark,” Klock said. “The growth has been truly amazing.”
The company has expanded operations to five facilities across the country, and has gone from 81 to 185 employees in less than a year and continues to hire.
“To be able to be the fastest growing beverage company, really in the world right now, is truly something amazing,” Klock said. “No one can predict this kind of success.”
Founded in 1987, TalkingRain has been popular in the Northwest for years, bottling water fresh from the Cascade foothills.
Their success comes as Jones Soda, a competitor and fellow Northwest beverage company, was delisted from the NASDAQ Stock Market Friday.
The company’s stock traded below $1 a share for a year and closed for the final time at $0.29 a share.
“We lost our edge,” said Jennifer Cue, CEO of Jones Soda. “We got too corporate along the way. There were numerous leadership changes which were a little bit too corporate for the company. We launched a lot of different products along the way and we lost our focus on Jones Soda.”
Klock said TalkingRain will be challenged with keeping a sense of community while growing as a company. He said they will stick to their core products while looking for opportunities to expand further into the national marketplace.
