Beverage Startups
BumbleZest – Raising Awareness Towards Bees Extinction
The way we live has a huge impact on our environment. Our impact on bees has been a major issue for some years now. The problem is the average consumer doesn’t notice the impact of bees decreasing population. Luckily, brands like Just Bee or BumbleZest. Today, I am extremely happy to have a chance of talking with Daniel Watson, the Founder at BumbleZest.
Each brand has a very interesting story to tell. What’s BumbleZest story?
I struggled to keep a balanced lifestyle working in property and living in a city with lots of distractions. With my previous work, I experienced high levels of stress and anxiety, which along with skin issues led me to develop BumbleZest. I started drinking lemon water with a drop of honey, often mixing it with different herbs I grow in my tiny Battersea garden. I wanted to start sourcing other incredible ingredients, so I finally packed in my day job to launch BumbleZest. I really hope everyone enjoys my recipes as much as I’ve had fun making them. I am delighted that my wife Emily has now also packed in her job and joined the BumbleZest team fulltime.
BumbleZest has a line of 6 different flavors. Did you have any difficulties finding perfect ingredient matches? Which one is your favorite?
Yes, we had our challenges but I’ve spent hours researching the right ingredients and we ensure all of our drinks are healthy, safe, tasty drinks with a long shelf life at room temperature without using any preservatives. We think we’ve found the perfect match!
I drink all of our range regularly however my probably go to recipe has to be our Calm&Comfort – Chamomile, Lavender and Spirulina. I think it is delicious and helps me distress, relax and unwind. It also contains some power house ingredients including a large dose of Chamomile which is underestimated and is very good for skin complexion.
What are the most important ingredients in your products?
We have up to 8 functional ingredients in every can and bottle so I would say the most important thing for us is that our ingredients are ethical and the best quality we can possibly find.
Recently, you have launched CBD-infused tonic water. Can you tell us more about the product?
Yes, it is a product we are really excited about. It’s low sugar and calorie alternative to other tonic waters on the market. We’ve used all-natural flavours and ingredients including Natural Quinine, Lemon Juice NFC, Maple, Ginger Juice NFC, Cinnamon extract and 5mg of full-spectrum EU compliant CBD. It is these natural ingredients that give it it’s lovely golden amber colour.
BumbleZest is a health shot. Who can use your products? Or is it suitable for everyone?
Yes, absolutely everyone. All of our products have been crafted to include healthy and functional ingredients perfect for people who want to stay healthy on the go. We use a gentle hot bath pasteurisation process to ensure our recipes are safe. Unlike unpasteurised juices, our drinks are safe for children (over one), the elderly, pregnant women, women breastfeeding and those with a compromised immune system. None of our drinks exceed the recommended daily dose (RDD) that could be toxic to a fetus or newborn, so pregnant or breastfeeding women can also enjoy them. This makes our drinks perfect for everyone.
BumbleZest is based in the United Kingdom. Where consumers can find your beverage? Are you planning to expand to other countries?
Our drinks are stocked in 850+ deli’s, coffee shops, whole food, health stores, farm shops, food halls and fitness centres across the UK. Yes we are already in stocked in over 100 stores in Ireland and can be found in 12 other European countries. We are also about to launch in Australia which we’re all very excited about!
BumbleZest has a mission of protecting bees. Can you explain to our readers the current situation of this problem?
We love nature and want to help the bees, which are in decline Worldwide. As of late 2016, seven US bee species have been put on the endangered species list for the first time in history. British bee numbers are also dropping, and so we have focused on only using ethical British Honey to help British beekeepers and colonies. We ensure all our Honey is ethical and comes from hives where Honey is left for the bees all year round over in order that the bees to survive the winter.
‘If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left’ – Albert Einstein
What is the biggest milestone for BumbleZest you aim to reach in 2020?
Having just launched our CBD tonic water for consumers to drink either as a sophisticated and healthy non-alcoholic drink on its own or of course as a mixer with your favourite premium spirit we would love to see this being used in many more of the most exciting cocktail menus in the UK and Ireland
What advice would you have given yourself before you started out in the beverage business?
Like all start-ups in the industry (actually all companies) we have lots of different challenges everyday, some big like will an ingredient from the other side of the world turn up in time for our bottling day, to some smaller challenges like who has the time that day to take our office dog ‘Indie’ out for her long daily walk. We work as a team, know each others strengths and mainly do not panic! So my advice would be everything has a solution… well, they have so far!
For more information visit BumbleZest’s website.
