the tactics that worked before still apply. Like Poppi, the idea for Jetty emerged from Allison’s own health concerns. While Poppi was inspired by her struggles with chronic stomach issues, Jetty was born out of her frustration with finding an electrolyte drink suitable for everyday hydration. “She was either drinking Liquid IV or LMNT, but ended up only being able to drink a portion of those sticks because there was so much sodium in those sticks that it was making her bloated or upset her stomach,” Stephen Ellsworth, Jetty’s CEO, told Inside Retail. Traditionally, he explained, electrolyte drinks have been marketed to high-performance athletes looking to stay hydrated during or after exercise. But what about ordinary consumers trying to stay hydrated while commuting, studying, parenting or simply going about their day? “That was really the ‘aha’ moment for us to say, ‘Hey, are consumers actually consuming a hydrating product daily?’ Okay, now let’s make them a product that is actually good for them.” Ellsworth also pointed to the high sodium content of many existing electrolyte drinks, along with ingredients such as artificial dyes and sweeteners. With Jetty, the couple deliberately avoided artificial colors, dyes and sweeteners. Instead, the drinks contain six grams of sugar, with organic cane sugar, coconut water concentrate and pear juice concentrate among the ingredients. Jetty launched on November 9 with a range of ready-to-drink beverages and ready-to-mix powders in five flavors. The products are available through its direct-to-consumer website, Whole Foods stores nationwide, and online at Target and Amazon. An in-store rollout at Target is planned for early 2027. Building upon the Poppi playbook Few beverage brands have captured consumers’ attention quite like Poppi. Its brightly colored packaging, aggressive TikTok strategy and combination of digital and experiential marketing helped establish the brand among Gen Z consumers. Its campaigns included Coachella activations and several Super Bowl ads featuring celebrities such as musician Charli XCX and influencer Alix Earle. But Ellsworth isn’t simply looking to repeat the same formula. “Poppi created a great framework,” he told Inside Retail. “The things that we fundamentally do today [to build Jetty] are going to be different than what we did at Poppi because times have changed. We’re evaluating different avenues and channels like TikTok Shop and what creates awareness and puts us front and center in culture.” The couple certainly know how to generate attention. Weeks before Jetty’s launch, Allison Ellsworth began teasing the new venture in an Instagram video on October 13, telling followers to “mark their calendars”. Initially, it wasn’t even clear what kind of brand Jetty would be. Social media posts featuring a gua sha tool and skincare-style packaging suggested it might be a beauty venture. The company also set about generating buzz before consumers could buy anything, running pre-launch campaigns that included email and SMS sign-ups offering the chance to win a custom “J-Card”. Ellsworth was delighted by the attention. “It’s been super, super fun all the buzz and conversation built around this brand that we’re launching with Jetty, an everyday, anti-dehydration drink.” That thinking extends to Jetty’s retail strategy. Rather than pursuing the widest possible distribution from the outset, Ellsworth wanted to partner with retailers that attract tastemakers and consumers eager to discover new products. “You’re not going to find us at the convenience store on the corner or the gas station,” he said. “We wanted to specifically go after places [like Target and Whole Foods] where we believe our consumer is shopping. The early adopters and innovators, the folks who are looking for new and unique brands, and are excited to talk about it and excited to discover and share.” For now, the focus is on building an organic community around Jetty, including giving consumers sneak previews of upcoming developments, rather than investing heavily in expensive in-person activations. “It’s really important to incubate the brand, build a small audience of people that are really excited about your product, rather than trying to cater to everybody.” Although the founders aren’t rushing into flashy activations or influencer-led campaigns, they are developing another form of content behind the scenes. According to Ellsworth, Allison has hired a production crew to follow the couple as they build Jetty, capturing footage for longer-form YouTube videos about their ambition to create another billion-dollar brand. “It’s a different style than the typical influencer content creator. There’s more substance behind it,” he explained. “It’s filming what we do with the kids and what real life looks like. Just because we had a two-billion exit with Poppi doesn’t mean Saturday mornings aren’t chaotic with the kids and getting to sports practice and doing all of these other things that just happen as part of life. It’s showing all of those real-life things, but also meetings with the team and what we’re doing to build a billion-dollar business again.” Just Jetty… For Now Despite their ambitions, Stephen and Allison Ellsworth are taking a measured approach, rather than rushing to develop a broader portfolio of products or brands. “My mantra is do fewer things better, so I’m narrowly focused on building Jetty, and want that to be successful,” Ellsworth said. “I always like to have optionality, so there are a few routes we can take, like selling, going public or acquiring brands and building a platform of our own. Right now, we’re not in a huge rush and don’t want to take outside capital that would make us do so. We want to lean in and ultimately do what’s best for the business in the long term.” For now, he wants to establish Jetty before considering expansion into other categories. “We’ve got a lot of work to do in front of us,” he said. Further reading: How New York or Nowhere turned city pride into an eight-figure brand