Positive Beverage LLC has boosted its retail network.
The company, which produces alternative energy drinks, closed a deal with Albertsons and Vons last year. The Newport Beach-based beverage startup’s sugar-free and sucralose-free drinks, dubbed Positive Energy, are now available in more than 280 grocery locations under the Albertsons and Vons banners in Southern California as of January.
“This is a huge breakthrough for the company and a sign that we’re making an impact in our very loud and crowded industry,” Shannon Argyros, chief executive and co-founder, said in a statement.
She told the Business Journal that the milestone was significant when going up against competitors like Celsius and Alani Nu.
Argyros, daughter-in-law of real estate executive George Argyros, took over the startup when her late husband, George Argyros Jr., passed away in 2020.
Since then, she has expanded Positive Beverage’s retail footprint annually making its largest market Southern California, where sales have grown 60% year-over-year, according to Argyros.
“We made our first big break in the grocery store market when we partnered with Pavilions in 2023,” she said, referencing the upscale grocery store under Vons. “Our success through the Pavilions launch has skyrocketed, showing that consumers truly desire a healthy alternative to the typical energy drinks out there.”
Positive Beverage launched its first electrolyte-filled sparkling water product in 2018. The company’s products can now be found at roughly 2,000 grocery stores across the country, including Bristol Farms, Costco and local Ranch Markets.
In 2021, Positive Beverage released its second product line, energy drinks with caffeine from green tea extract.
“Expanding to Vons and Albertsons allows us to make an even bigger splash in the health-conscious community,” she said. “We’ve got 10 times the amount of electrolytes as your leading sports beverage.”
The brand is also a regular exhibitor at Anaheim’s annual Natural Products Expo West.
“It is essential to attend,” Argyros told the Business Journal at last year’s event. She is also seeking to enter other health-focused grocers like Mother’s Market and Sprouts Farmers Market soon.
“It amplifies the message that a small business can drive meaningful innovation in the beverage industry, and that’s not possible without industry partners,” Argyros said.
“Dusting Off the Marketing Hat”
Argyros started her local career at SDC Technologies Inc. in Anaheim as a marketing specialist in 1998 and later moved into corporate communications.
In 2002, she joined Irvine-based Edwards Lifesciences to oversee web-related media then two years in, joined the investor relations team as a senior financial analyst.
Her Orange County experience and ties later led her to the board of counselors at the Argyros Business School at Chapman University. Argyros remains involved with the entrepreneurial student body and is testing a student ambassador program for Positive Beverage at the school.