HOPR

HOPR is an Australian functional beverage brand started by Jose Ramirez, originally from New York. HOPR is a healthy alternative to alcohol and sugary non-alcoholic beverages. It’s zero-sugar, zero-calorie and gluten-free.

The challenge: Ramping up production runs

Getting HOPR off the ground was never an easy road for Jose Ramirez. Started in his kitchen, his first production company pulled the plug one week before they were due to start.

His second facility had a fire. But finally, in December 2021, they were ready to launch. He assumed that he needed to go to supermarkets, bottle shops and hotels with HOPR.

So he started knocking on doors: “I was basically trying to educate the market”, says Jose. They asked how much it was and when he answered, they asked him could he make it cheaper.

Making HOPR at a cheaper price would involve larger production runs. At the time, his small batch production couldn’t leverage economies of scale, making it unattractive to retailers and hospitality businesses.

Jose didn’t come from money. His parents had grown up in poorer countries and immigrated to the US. He also had over $100,000 in student loans to pay off, and all his money went towards that. The bank was his first port of call:

“I went to the bank and they said, ‘sure, are you profitable?’ and I said, ‘I can’t be profitable just yet. I’m trying to grow this business to this amount, but I can’t do that without funds. Can you help me out?’ And they said ‘ no’”.

These two barriers to entry left him almost locked out of bricks and mortar as a sales channel.

Thankfully, there was an online space that Jose who had a tech background was familiar with – one that in his mind, no one was utilizing in Australia from a beverage standpoint.

His focus went to DTC and little by little, they made more sales. But to increase production runs and introduce new flavors, they quickly needed funding.

The solution: Funding that reflected future sales growth

A friend introduced Jose to Wayflyer, a partner that in his eyes finally understood his business trajectory. “I realized if I continue making sales online, this could be a path”.

Jose had originally funded the business using a personal loan and a bit of savings that he had put aside. He approached Wayflyer, they assessed HOPR, gave him an offer and shared that if sales continued to increase, that figure would grow:

Getting the financing HOPR needed was huge for Jose: “Finally, someone wanted to give me a chance that believes in me and my business.”

The results: An astronomical 600% revenue growth

It was a decision that quickly paid off in spades. Jose explains:

“Without Wayflyer, this entire journey and how much we’ve grown -by 600% in the past year- could not have been possible. It’s just insane. It was a blessing, really.” Jose Ramirez, Founder, HOPR

With the funds, Jose was able to bring on new staff to help him scale, increase production runs, and introduce a fifth and sixth flavor, which he had always wanted to do.

Once again, Wayflyer’s funding will be key there: “Without the capital injection, we can’t do much, to be honest with you. With our sixth flavor we’ll go from five to six figures in funding.”

His continued success just confirms his belief in the company’s mission: “We're doing something in Australia that hasn't been done by a beverage company before.

And that is awesome. Right. And we're going to continue just exploring the online space to see however far we can take it.”

Their relationship with Wayflyer has now become a long-term partnership: “Wayflyer has been one of the main reasons that I've been able to grow the business to where it is right now. I'm very appreciative of their support.”

He has regular calls with the Customer Experience team: “Each time it’s been a really good conversation. They’re very accommodating.”

He continues: “It’s really good to have because I don’t know much about that side of the business and I’m learning every time. Having that experience of being able to just have good one–on-one chats is very good.”

“We have big plans that I hope Wayflyer will continue to support. We want to become a $50 million business within a couple of years. But the main goal is to help at least a million Australians have a better relationship with alcohol.” Jose Ramirez, Founder, HOPR