[00:00:10] Ray Latif: Hello friends, I'm Ray Latif and you're tuned in to Taste Radio, the leading podcast for entrepreneurs and innovators in the food and beverage industry. In this episode, we sit down with Ben Mand, the CEO of Yerba Madre, the leading brand of Yerba Madre beverages, formerly known as Guayaquil. Our conversation explores how the company is expanding its national footprint while staying true to its regenerative roots and mission-driven values. Yerba Madre is a brand nearly synonymous with its namesake ingredient. But in a country where most consumers have never even heard of Yerba Madre, how do you build a household name around it? Guiding that vision is Ben Mand, who was named CEO of Yerba Madre in March of 2024. Formerly known as Guayaquil, the company has been pioneering Yeramate-based beverages since 1996, offering both loose-leaf and ready-to-drink formats. Today, the brand generates nearly $200 million in annual sales and is stocked in natural and conventional retailers nationwide. In this episode, Ben shares how Yerba Madre is evolving beyond its West Coast roots with a bold mission to introduce Yerba Madre to the 96% of Americans who still don't know what it is. But this is about more than a beverage. Ben sees it as an opportunity to reshape how people think about clean, plant-based energy. He discusses the balance between visionary leadership and operational discipline, reigniting innovation, thinking like a founder, and scaling responsibly, all while remaining rooted in the company's deeper mission, advancing regenerative agriculture in South America, and building a brand that stands for purpose, authenticity, and cultural respect. One note, this episode was recorded during the breakdown of our BevNET Live Summer 2025 event, and you may hear some background clatter. Our apologies for the occasional bang or boom. Hey, folks, it's Ray with Taste Radio. Right now, I am honored to be sitting down with Ben Mand, who is the CEO of Yerba Madre. Ben, it's great to see you. Hey, Ray, it's great to see you, too. Yeah, we've run into each other many times over the years, the first being at the Winter Fantasy Food Show in 2019. I checked. I wasn't sure if it was 2018 or 2019. It was 2019. That's when it was in San Francisco. And at the time, you had just become the CEO of Harmless Harvest. Yeah, I remember that. Yeah, yeah. It was a great conversation. And I'm glad that you brought that company back from the brink. It was a little touch and go. And I mean, what a brilliant brand that is. And I'm so happy that you're with another company. that used to be called Guayaquil and is now Yerba Madre and embarking on a whole new different kind of adventure. Very exciting times.
[00:03:13] Ben Mand: It is really exciting. I love it. I've had my eye on this company, this brand, its purpose for quite a while. So when the opportunity availed itself, I literally jumped on it. Literally.
[00:03:28] Ray Latif: You know, I I'm always amazed when I mention Guayaquil, which is now again Yerba Madre, and people aren't familiar with the brand. And we'll get into that because I think that's part of the story of the rebrand. But just for context for our audience, just give us a bit of information about where this company came from, why it's been so relevant for so many years.
[00:03:51] Ben Mand: It started actually 29 years ago, which is pretty amazing. I think, you know, oftentimes, you know, in this ecosystem where we're talking about entrepreneurs and these new products and innovation and concepts, you know, they're just a couple of years old, but this is something that's been around for a while. And it's, it's a really exciting business. You know, it started 29 years ago in Cal Poly. The two founders, David and Alex, had met. And Alex had a, it was from Argentina, and he was drinking Yerba Madre and really shared the benefits of Yerba Madre. So for folks that don't know what Yerba Madre is, it is a tree or plant that grows in South America. The leaves are caffeinated, so much like tea, the leaves are caffeinated. But it is not a tea. Actually, it's part of the holly family. But it's like a tea in the sense that the leaves are caffeinated. We harvest, we then dry them, mill them, and we brew them into beverages. That's how we consume it most often in the United States. But for centuries, indigenous communities and folks in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, and then really across South America, but especially those four, have been consuming Yerba Madre, traditionally consumed in a gourd, the bombilla, which is that metal straw, and enjoying it. And the benefit of it is really nice in the sense that it's a natural source of caffeine. but it has a nice even caffeine flow. So it's not that spike that you often experience with coffee, but it has also the vitamins, minerals, polyphenols that you would associate sometimes with a green tea, has theobromine in it, which is in chocolate, gives you a little bit of that enjoyment, that kind of a little bit of that euphoria. scents, theophylline, other micronutrients that just help with focus and things like that. So just a really nice experience, whether you're drinking it hot, as I often do in the morning, or if you enjoy it in a can or a bottle that we sell a common days today on shelf.
[00:05:54] Ray Latif: One of the things that's always been something that I respected about the company is that it never felt like it was exploiting Irimate. It felt like all of its success, all of its commercial success came hand in hand with social and environmental responsibility. I think sometimes that's counterintuitive in this crazy capitalistic world of ours. How do they stay true or how has the company stayed true to that mission, to that focus of being A brand that can share your Ramazi with so many more consumers, but also doing it in a way that is socially responsible.
[00:06:31] Ben Mand: Yeah, you know, it's a great question, a great point. I mean, it is a founding principle. So, you know, when David and Alex came together, it was not only just about the benefits of Yerba Madre, they wanted to do business differently. And when you think about this 29 years ago, that is true pioneer thinking back at that time. And the idea was what we call a regenerative business model, right? So starting all the way from seed into the farms, working with indigenous communities, all the way to shelf, How do we positively impact everybody? How do we make sure with each of these partners and these participants along the way that we have a positive impact, whether it be environment or people in communities or employees, how do we have a positive impact? So that's always been the DNA of our business. And, you know, you're right. It hasn't been about exploiting capitalism or anything like that. This is one of those very true grassroots businesses where it was, you know, David and Alex, you know, they had a VW van and they, you know, went from community to community and farmer's market or you name it. And they were brewing Yerba Madre, passing them out, sampling it. Uh, and selling loose leaf. So that was, that was the business in the beginning. It wasn't even any RTD can or bottle or anything like that. It started all with brewing Yerba Madre, talking about the benefits of Yerba Madre, experiencing the benefits of Yerba Madre. So, and when you're creating a new category, like Yerba Madre was, was not, and still is not that well known. in the United States or South America here. So really it's, you know, it takes a lot of education and people experiencing it early days to create a category.
[00:08:10] Ray Latif: What's household penetration awareness for your Ramada in the United States?
[00:08:14] Ben Mand: It's pretty low. I would say probably in the 4% range. So, you know, we're in the infant stages, so to speak, of people understanding. And, you know, that's for just Yerba Madre in general. We are clearly the leaders in Yerba Madre. In fact, we pretty much define the category. For us, they recognize us. So, you know, when you think about awareness, if you go to awareness and stuff, the actual name, you know, prior to changing. So, you know, Yerba Madre is really nascent now because we just changed our name. But even as Guayaquil, people did not know that. But you show them the yellow can and they recognize and know that. So, you know, it's amazing the power of the branding, but maybe not as strong and resonant of a name.
[00:08:58] Ray Latif: Yeah, well, before the rebrand, I started seeing cans of Guayaquil that had made the brand name almost something that you couldn't see on the can. I know it was still on the can, but it was very much Yerba Madre was the primary focus, right in the middle of the can. And I said, what's going on here? Like, you know, why is Guayaquil doing that? And clearly it was a stage to get to Euromadre. But why did you feel like, and this has all happened on your watch, and this is, has this been something that's been in the works for some time, or is this something that you felt like needed to happen for the brand to make that next step?
[00:09:34] Ben Mand: Well, the team had started thinking about it before I got there. Actually, just as I was getting there, we made the decision to make the transition. It is important when you're creating a category, having what it is prominent on your package does make a lot of sense. And because the name was not so easy to pronounce and most people cannot pronounce it, most people just refer to us as Yerba or Yerba or the yellow can or whatever it may be. that was just a very important insight. And what really struck me is as I went to South America and visited with indigenous communities and farms and farmers across Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina, one of the things that I really recognized is Guayaquil is part of the original indigenous community that we worked with. but did not reflect and include the wide array of indigenous communities that we work with across all three countries, as well as individual farmers that we work with. And when farmers would ask or other communities would ask, you know, but we're not Guayaquil, it really struck me at, you know, maybe how it wasn't as inclusive as we really could be.
[00:10:50] Ray Latif: It is a great name. It's a beautiful name, Euromadre. I mean, it just feels the motherly part of it goes a long way. But I think what a lot of people would ask, and I think it's a fair question, why now? 29 years in, I think there is a bit of confusion as to, well, what's going on here? Like, why now? Why was the timing right for this change?
[00:11:12] Ben Mand: you know, sometimes at various times, you know, in a business, you take a pause and you step back and you reflect on like what's working or not working. And, you know, that often happens with leadership, right? You know, when you have new leaders come in or a new board is formed or whatever it may be, that those are usually moments of reflection on what's working and not working. And so, you know, it was one of the things that we looked at. And I think there was a growing sense of like, you know, there was an opportunity, but it's a fair amount of work and it takes, a lot of planning and a savvier organization to be able to pull that off. It was one of the things that we took a look at. We felt that there was an opportunity. As we looked at names, you're right, we agree Yerba Madre was the perfect fit. What we were looking for was we wanted a name that had Yerb or Yerba in it. And what's interesting is Yerba Madre is considered the mother herb in these communities. And so mother being part of that just felt so natural for it to be Yerba Madre. And we are, you know, part of our central core mission is positively impacts Mother Earth. and regenerate the forests and regenerate the farms. So it felt only natural and it felt far more inclusive and it reflected us. And we felt, you know, for us, we embrace our first 29 years of Guayaquil. And for us, it's just another chapter in the ongoing story and legacy that we're trying to build and building this category and this brand in this category.
[00:12:47] Ray Latif: It doesn't happen very often where a brand decides just to completely change its name. And, you know, again, it's not that much of a stretch because, you know, again, most people refer to it as the Yerba Madre brand or Yerb or what have you. But when you do make that decision or when you're considering a big decision like that, how do you test? How do you make sure that you're asking the right questions, that you're talking to the right people? Clearly you did your homework, but I mean, what did that homework entail?
[00:13:16] Ben Mand: Creating new brand names, whether it be the company name in this case, or renaming a product line or something, you're right, it doesn't happen very often. But naming is one of those things that you can't fully test. There are things you do, and I'll talk about the testing in just a moment. But it is something that when you look at it, you're looking for, is this a vessel? This name, right now, when you take a name, it doesn't have much meaning or has existing meaning in society. But all the marketing and everything you do is then going to start applying meaning to your brand and how it really starts coming to life. So there are plenty of brands out in the marketplace that are kind of crazy and seemed bizarre at the time, but are now just common vernacular. back when internet was coming around and there were search engines and it was Infoseek and stuff like that. And then you have Yahoo and Google come along. Those are totally off the beaten path and not, you know, you know, unexpected. So, you know, over time, you certainly start building meaning behind those brands and what they do. With that, you know, we have a, given our grassroots nature and such a strong loyal base, and the beauty is with this, you know, platform of ambassadors, so these ambassadors, for us, they are so key to the brand. So first it starts with the founders, like, as we did this process, very clearly, they were in the middle, at the heart of the work and the decision making, but you know, as we identified the brand name, Yerba Madre, they fell in love and we spent time with our ambassadors. Now we didn't count it as renaming the company, right? But we talked about it as an initiative. We talked about it as a product or we talked in many different ways and just looked at different concepts and names and stuff like that in small groups and more quantitative senses to just get feedback. across the board in each sense, we always got the most positive kind of liking and heart for Yerba Madre, which was great to see because it's, you know, we felt it intrinsically in the work that we're doing. And we felt that it reflected everything we've been about for the last 29 years. And we feel it stands for what we want to build as we look to the future for the next several decades. And so it was really nice that both of those aligned.
[00:15:34] Ray Latif: In an era where functionality seems to be so important to any new CPG brand or existing one, how does the change help you sell the functional benefit? Does it?
[00:15:46] Ben Mand: Yeah, well, one thing is that really helps us focus on Yerba Madre Yerba as part of our brand name, and that is how people refer to it. On a very practical basis, most of our new consumers, you know, if you look at brands and how they're getting new consumers and how they look at where they're losing to and whatnot, You know, the way they get people in the funnel is, you know, sampling is always a key way, but, you know, they spend marketing dollars, they do whatever. And our biggest way has been through kind of referral word of mouth and people sharing with the next person. And so having, it's hard to refer and recommend a brand when you don't know how to say it. So that's why people have just. shortened it to Yerb and Yerba which was just, you know, they laid the groundwork for us and we just followed, you know, kind of like the crumbs that they laid in front of us and said, you know what, you know, we need to embrace this idea of just calling ourselves something along the lines that leverages Yerb or Yerba. So, you know, from a referral standpoint, a pass along, that's really important. And we think that really helps, A, build the brand and get people more experienced in it, but just getting people into trying it and starting to understand the benefits of Yerba Madre.
[00:16:58] Ray Latif: I mean, I got to tell you, I was drinking some Yerba Madre yesterday. And I had some today as well. And I felt like my focus was so much more sharpened than it had been otherwise. Sometimes I will just crush cups of coffee here at BevNET Live. And it doesn't really do a lot for me. And luckily, there was Yerba Madre booth right at the entrance. And I had a couple cups of the hot yeramate. And I was like, what's going on here? Because I've obviously had your products before. But I think that experience is something that, yes, it helps when it's word of mouth. But I guess how do you, how are you sharing that story and how are you able to share it in a way that doesn't necessarily require someone to experience it at first?
[00:17:47] Ben Mand: Yeah, no, it's a really great point. And that this is like what you're sharing right here is what I hear over and over and over from consumers, from buyers, from my family that drinks it and whatnot is, you know, when you drink a cup of coffee, you tend to get that caffeine spike and then crash. And what's beautiful about Yerba Madre and our product is that it's a more sustained and even release of caffeine. And so you don't have that same kind of experience where you spike up and spike down. You know, we often talk about it, you know, you're getting into, you know, when you're riding, when you're in your sport, let's say you're running or whatever, you get into your flow. It really kind of works in that flow, right? It's a very even release. There's that enjoyment. There's a lot of science out there if you look at the science materials about focus, right? That it allows you to kind of get in the zone, get in that moment. And it's amazing when we talk to people who use the product, it can be anything from athletes who like, you know, this is like part of their regimen to make sure they get in the zone, to writers, how many writers we have talking about? Just like they get into that flow state to runners, right? Running a marathon or whatever, like, you know, having the Yerba Madre and like really kind of getting into their zone, into their flow. So, um, it's something that I personally experienced. I, that's, you know, what I really enjoy about it, but it's, it's what, you know, consumers play back to us as well.
[00:19:15] Ray Latif: So you have a varied or you have various groups that you can draw upon to share the story, athletes, writers, runners. I mean, I guess athletes and runners, they're part of the same cohort in some ways, but When you want to, I guess, focus your marketing on a particular group, do you?
[00:19:33] Ben Mand: You know, it's definitely more of a psychographic target. It's somebody who is looking for a natural source of energy. So, you know, our consumers tend to think more consciously about what they're putting in their body, right? They're not looking for something that's, you know, built and constructed in a lab. They want something closer to earth, closer to nature. And so I think that's just a key vein. You know, often they are, you know, they start and, you know, we have a cohort, a core set of our consumers who are younger, right? And they don't really have a hot routines, meaning like coffee or tea or something like that. And they look to beverages and they look to Yerba Madre as, as that source of energy for them. And so, you know, we, you know, do really well with, I would say, you know, uh, you know, young college students. And if you're talking about like a, an age group or something like that, um, you know, they tend to, you know, they've got finals and study, they have, you know, a lot going on and they live, you know, I would say, you know, our consumers, they, They like to live life to the fullest, right? They're very engaged, whether it be, you know, academically, to surfing, to on the mountains, to they're outdoors, they're into music, they're just really full of life. And whether they're that 21 year old or that 35 year old, they're all kind of young at heart and have this kind of zest to live and to be, you know, to live life at its fullest. And so that is, you know, kind of the DNA of our consumer. So that's when we think about marketing, we think about who our consumer is, this enthusiast, that's who we think about.
[00:21:10] Ray Latif: Do you feel like you have more of an opportunity now than in the past? to take market share from some of those energy brands that I think you referred to, the ones that have synthetic ingredients or artificial ingredients. Do you feel like that's part of your mission now as CEO to broaden the awareness of your Ramaté and go after some of the brands like, you know, I'll just say them, a Red Bull, a Monster, what have you.
[00:21:38] Ben Mand: Yeah, you know, I think the way we look at it is like, it is a functional need. People are looking for a way to kind of power through the day, right? How do I like, you know, what is my morning routine, kind of midday or whatever it may be? Or, you know, for some people it's going out at night, right? And they want to pick me up before they go out and have fun with their friends or whatever it may be. You know, the way we look at it is like, we think it's important to be as close to earth and as natural as possible and have a positive impact. And overall, we're seeing a leaky, if you look across the story, it doesn't matter if it's in beverages and energy or where it is, there's a leaky bucket of households and people who are willing to just keep consuming these products that maybe aren't the best for them. And they are looking for better alternatives. And yes, we benefit from that. So when you look in the world of like, energy and I'm calling that like coffee. I'm talking about that energy drinks. I'm talking about there's all sorts of ways that people get energy. They are increasingly turning to us and we do benefit from that. I totally agree.
[00:22:38] Ray Latif: When you're considering the market opportunities that you have, is it channel-based? Is it channel-specific? Is it a particular group of consumers? Are you looking You know, regionally, how are you looking at the opportunities that are in front of you now?
[00:22:59] Ben Mand: I'll start from a regional standpoint. We have historically been a strong West Coast brand. I mean, we were founded in California. California was our, has been our home base and we're very strong in California. Over the years, we really expanded and built kind of a whole, like more of a West Coast. So I would say west of the Rockies is where we really played very strongly. And now over the last couple of years, now we're really focusing on expanding and bringing, you know, the power of your mate nationally. And so, you know, if you think of it from a geographic standpoint, expanding there. The other thing to think about is we think about first, A, enthusiasts, and then B, where's the moment or where do people kind of, when they are looking for that pick-me-up, right? An energy drink or something to give them a good boost of energy. Where do they typically shop? And one common place is, you know, like a convenience store or, you know, kind of a little mom-and-pop kind of little grocery store on the corner or whatever it may be. That is, you know, where, you know, often you have that kind of immediate need of like, I need a, you know, kind of a pick-me-up or whatever it may be, or my daily dose, right? And I'm going to stop and pick something up on my walk to work. That's where we need to be. So when you think about it from a channel standpoint, making sure that we're at that, you know, that when they go to look for us, that we're available in those places, then there's always strategically for every business, you got to think about like, where are those moments of discovery, right? So discovery can be in the natural channel, right? You know, whether it be a Whole Foods or a Sprouts or, you know, in a co-op. You know, those are products that are, you know, people that are shopping there know that those have gone through a lengthy process to make sure that they're good products and they're good for the environment and people and for them, for their health. So, you know, finding it there is certainly that is one of those moments of discovery. But discovery also occurs in a club store like a Costco. Discovery happens in non-traditional channels, whether it be at an airport or a university bookstore or places like that. So, you know, for any business, ourselves included, we're thinking like, where are those moments of discovery, especially for our enthusiasts, as we call them? Where are their moments of discovery? And then where are their moments of shopping?
[00:25:15] Ray Latif: Do you see your role then as to maintain the success and the reputation that the company and the Brad Avery as much as you do growing the business?
[00:25:30] Ben Mand: That is a really important point. I actually look at it as, what my mission is, is how do we build the Yerba Madre, bring the power of Yerba Madre to everyone, right? And we as the leader and the category originator in this country of Yerba Madre, that is part of what we need to do. Now, when you're building a brand and building a movement, it is absolutely important and imperative that you remain tethered to the DNA of what you're trying to do. So I look at it as these things just go hand in hand. So we are doubling down our efforts on impact and how we drive that. just as much as we are looking at ways like how do we start bringing this to more people, which means, yes, more sales and the profit that you get for that allows you then to drive even more positive impact and to drive even more sales. One of the things I'm excited about is already this year, we will contribute four times what we did last year in our efforts for regeneration in South America. planting trees, working with indigenous communities. Just from the growth of the company or just in growth and sales? Also, I changed how much and how we approach our impact. Next year, it'll be eight times and the following year, I think maybe even 15 times. So just really changing the mechanisms, it's requiring me to really think with the team, how we structure ourselves for success, right? Getting more dedicated resources to drive impact, more dedicated resources in the form of agronomists and others to work with farmers and work on planting trees in regeneration. You know, I'm thinking about like bigger scale greenhouses to start seedlings and stuff. Ironically, you know, years ago, my wife at that time, fiance and I took a leave of absence from our consulting careers. And we went down to Central America and we did volunteer work. And for a while we worked on an organic coffee farm and we were shucking seeds and planting seedlings and doing all that type of stuff. And it's fun to, you know, come full circle a bit, you know, into Yerba Madre and be thinking about those kinds of activities and how we scale those types of activities. to have the positive impacts we have. And I think one final thing I would say about this is, I think some people would look at this or come into a business and they say, well, you could save so much money by not doing that. Just focus on, you can drive the sales and profit and your mate is a thing in itself and it has great powers and benefits to consumers. So shouldn't that be enough? But I would argue that increasingly consumers are recognizing that we can't rely on government, NGOs, or whatever it may be to drive positive change. That, you know what, your pocketbook, like the choices you make on a daily basis also contributes to driving change. And increasingly, I think the businesses that are going to be successful in the future are businesses that make the right choice for environment, for people, and build success and prosperity for everybody who participates. So I think it has to be part of the DNA of the business and that's why it's part of our business.
[00:28:39] Ray Latif: That's the Patagonia way in so many ways. And it's funny you mentioned NGO because I was thinking when you were talking, I'm like, well, the company isn't an NGO. I mean, and I wonder how much your customers really value what you're doing or even know what you're doing? Certainly you can share as much as you want on social media, on your packaging, whatnot, but do they really pay attention to that? Do they really care?
[00:29:01] Ben Mand: The way I look at it, and this is with each of the businesses I've been with and here with Yerba Madre is, consumers do care. Do they know? Most of them don't know much or the full extent of what we do or some of these brands do. if you were to do kind of what is the payoff or your ROI on these activities right now, I believe right now, it's not that high of an ROI in that sense, but I do believe over the longterm, it is a high ROI. And I think that is the case I would make to any investor or to anybody else is, this is a longterm mindset. And over the longterm, it'll make, It'll build greater resilience in our farms and with our farmers and so our supply chain, which is positive from a cost standpoint. It builds better, I think, stickier consumers. Typically what happens is people don't necessarily just because it's responsible. If I don't need a mattress, I'm not going to go buy that mattress, right? but you stick with that and you talk about it and talk to the next person, that is one of the things that makes a brand and makes us sticky. And that is one of the reasons why most of our new consumers come through referral. It's not only because it's a great product and the benefits they feel from your mate, but it's a responsible company. And so it does, I do believe both in the short term it's growing, but over the longterm, that is what's going to drive success.
[00:30:48] Ray Latif: Ben, you're the CEO of the company, but I think one might mistake you as being the founder of the company because you speak in a way that is very vision-focused or vision-oriented. Does it get difficult sometimes to think about this company in an entrepreneurial mindset, or at least your role in an entrepreneurial mindset? Because on the one hand, you do have very specific responsibilities. And then on the other hand, you're saying, well, we could do so much more. We could go in this direction or that direction. How do you maintain your own focus? Or is it important to do that?
[00:31:23] Ben Mand: Yeah, it's a great question. We all have our towering strengths and our opportunity areas. I am one of those people who does kind of live in between, right, where I, you know, I have a very entrepreneurial streak to me. Anybody who works with me knows that I'm a, you know, when I'm in a big company environment at General Mills, I was a more of a differential thinker. I like thought about approach problems and solve problems in a very different ways. which was, you know, useful for me there. So I do have that, but I also understand how to scale a business and how to build a business. I think one of the things, you know, going back to your point on like, you know, focus versus like diversion and stuff, you know, there's a certain amount of things you want to be trying. It's not so singular, but a degree of focus is really important. We need to be clear to employees, to partners, to everybody on what are the main things we're trying to accomplish. A degree of focus is important, especially as you're trying to scale a business like this. each business I've been on, you have to be open to kind of the insights and kind of what that situation is. And one thing, you know, I have a fair amount of experience in innovation, but one thing that's important to recognize when you're creating a category is for 96% of Americans, Yerba Madre is the innovation. Like they don't even know what yerba, in fact, my family, they're like Yerba Madre? What is this Yerba Madre? I'm like, okay, well, it's Yerba Madre. And I have to explain it to them, right? And so when people don't know the base ingredient and you're creating a new category, it's less about in the earlier years, all the permutations of Yerba Madre. It is first and foremost, celebrating Yerba Madre and helping more and more people understand what Yerba Madre is and finding entry points, ways for people to enjoy it. So certainly we have loose and we have Yerba Madre in these sachets, like a teabag, but we have yerba. In fact, that's what I was drinking. I carry it in my backpack when I travel. So finding ways for people to experience, whether it be a morning day part, which is when I typically drink it hot, I'll drink it in a French press. If I'm with others, I might drink it out of a gourd and share a gourd and pass a gourd. If I'm alone, I will just do it in a French press. If I'm traveling, I bring the little bags, the sachets with me and just get some hot water and put it in there. But then maybe around lunch or whatever, that's when I have a can or a bottle. I choose to consume it at that point. And so really focusing on what are the right ways and different ways for people to experience it, that is in a broader sense. And I think that's something that people have to wrap their mind around. It's not all the different permutations. How do you get really focused on Yerba Madre? What are the best ways, easiest ways for people to start learning about and adopting and using Yerba Madre?
[00:34:17] Ray Latif: Well, a lot of the innovation that I've seen come out of the beverage space that that is associated with Yerba Madre has been a beverage form. Yeah. And there are a lot of new brands, it seems like, that have come to market in the last two years that position themselves as this amazing functional beverage that will give you clear focus and the caffeinated boost that doesn't come from other sources. And I wonder if that's at all been on your radar. Yeah. If that's something that impacts the way you guys do business? I would assume no, because again, 96% of the market is your companies, your brands. So is it something that you even pay attention to or?
[00:34:59] Ben Mand: I definitely pay attention. So, you know, we, when I took over, we didn't have an innovation team. So we now have an innovation team. There was not a separate team to do innovation.
[00:35:08] Ray Latif: So you had no innovation team at Guayaquil, now Yerba Madre. Wow.
[00:35:12] Ben Mand: Yeah.
[00:35:12] Ray Latif: So weird. Did they like 86 the team? Cause there was innovation coming out.
[00:35:16] Ben Mand: I mean, in years past. I think we went through a period and there were not to say, I mean, for 29 years, we definitely had people on innovation, but we went through a period where, It would just be, you know, an item. And when I joined, there was a, you know, a new flavor that was going to be launched. And it was like a memo being sent around. People would just kind of like, yep, that looks good. That looks good or whatever. It was not a person's job to actually be, you know, mining insights from the marketplace, keeping track of innovation, what really makes sense for us, how do we continue to innovate, renovate our products, you know, to stay current. But now that is, there's a team that's focused on that. So absolutely, you have to keep track of things out in the marketplace. But this is a lesson that I've learned and that everybody has to understand is like you also have to remain focused on your game and your strategy. Don't allow all the different things in the marketplace to distract you. Most of them, you know, if you're playing your strategy and it's, you know, obviously it needs to be a reasonably smart strategy, you got to play your game, right? And so we remain focused on, you know, building Yerba Madre and building, getting more people to experience Yerba Madre and finding the most logical ways for them to enter and having the most logical products. that make it permissible. So, you know, in our case, the cans are very popular and just making delicious products, right? You know, thinking of flavors that have nice broad, you know, appeal. People like mint, people like berry, people like, you know, those types of things. That's, you know, that paired with Yerba Madre, which is a little foreign for most people, that kind of like comfort. And I know that versus something that I'm becoming familiar with, that security and engagement kind of approach, it seems to work.
[00:36:56] Ray Latif: Ben, one of the great things about speaking with you is you speak with so much passion and excitement for whatever it is that you're doing. And as I mentioned, it feels like you have this founder mindset, this entrepreneurial mode that is sometimes uncommon with CEOs in our industry, I think. The reputation that a lot of folks have is, or at least the perception is, that they're in the boardroom, behind a desk, on the computer, and just crunching the numbers. And it feels like you're in there with both arms. just working away with your team. And it's so great to see because Yerba Madre is such a beautiful brand that deserves, I think, that passion and deserves the care and attention and the love that you put into it. So it's a match made in heaven as far as I can tell. And thank you so much for taking the time to talk about your work with the brand and where it goes from here.
[00:37:51] Ben Mand: Yeah, thanks a lot, Ray. I really enjoyed the conversation. And, you know, I grew up pretty poor in Wisconsin, and I saw firsthand, you know, family members working paycheck to paycheck and not necessarily loving what they do. And one lesson I took from that is you have to love what you do. You have to be passionate about what you do. And so I choose to do the things that I'm passionate about, which is food and beverage and working in businesses that strive to make a positive impact. And I feel my job is to create an ecosystem that people, we're accountable, we're going to work hard, we're going to do great stuff, but we're going to have fun. We're going to enjoy what we do. And there's going to be purpose behind what we do.
[00:38:33] Ray Latif: Yeah. And I think we saw that today during the event, during BevNET Live, which is, The people that were most moved by speakers were the speakers that were most passionate about what they were doing, were most excited about the opportunity to deliver a better product, to create a new category for consumers, especially when those things didn't exist in the past. And it's so it was really fun to hear you talk about how for so many people in this country, Yerimate is the innovation, which means you have so much more room to grow. So exciting times for sure. And I can't wait to follow it all. All right. Thanks a lot, Ray. Thank you, Ben. That brings us to the end of this episode of Taste Radio. Thank you so much for listening. Taste Radio is a production of BevNET.com Incorporated. Our audio engineer for Taste Radio is Joe Cracci. Our technical director is Joshua Pratt, and our video editor is Ryan Galang. Our social marketing manager is Amanda Smerlinski, and our designer is Amanda Huang. Just a reminder, if you like what you hear on Taste Radio, please share the podcast with friends and colleagues. And of course, we would love it if you could review us on the Apple Podcasts app or your listening platform of choice. Check us out on Instagram. Our handle is bevnettasteradio. As always, for questions, comments, ideas for future podcasts, please send us an email to ask at Taste Radio.com. On behalf of the entire Taste Radio team, thank you for listening. And we'll talk to you next time.
[00:40:06] Yerba Madre: you
