After a particularly boozy holiday season nearly three years ago, Tom Holland opted to take a short break from alcohol.
The Spider-Man actor participated in “Dry January,” a health campaign-turned-social movement that began over a decade ago in Holland’s home country, the United Kingdom, but has since expanded globally. Each year, millions attempt to go alcohol-free for 31 days to kick off the new year.
For Holland, going booze-free proved to be more difficult than he had anticipated. So he pushed himself to continue through February, which he found even more challenging, and then until his birthday on June 1. By the end of 2022, Holland hadn’t consumed alcohol for 365 days. And he vowed to never drink it again.
“I really started leaning on non-alcoholic beer,” Holland tells Fast Company. “It helped me kind of scratch that itch and fill that social void that I was missing.”
But he wasn’t thrilled with the taste of all the non-alcoholic beers he found in the local pub and on retail shelves. And Holland wasn’t too keen on the marketing, as the alcohol-free beers from large brands including Stella Artois, Peroni, and Heineken prominently feature blue on their labels.
“To me, that blue label sticks out,” says Holland. “I think it is unfair to that sober or sober-curious person, because it makes you feel you are standing out, when really all you want to do is blend in.”
With that in mind, Holland has become a cofounder of a new alcohol-free beer brand, called Bero, encased in gold and debuting with three styles: pilsner, IPA, and a wheat. Sold for $16 per six-pack, Bero is available online and will roll out in on-premise bar and restaurant accounts in New York City and Los Angeles. Bero hopes to enter the United Kingdom by the end of the year and broaden expansion stateside in time for the upcoming Dry January.
The non-booze boom
Non-alcoholic beer, wine, and spirits sales have soared to $740 million annually in the United States in retail channels tracked by research firm NIQ. Though that’s less than 1% of total beverage alcohol sales, growth has been consistently in the double-digits and NIQ projects it will reach $1 billion in liquor stores, grocery, and other retailers within the next two years.
“The question we commonly get is how big can these products get?” asks Kaleigh Theriault, an associate director covering the alcoholic beverage industry for NIQ. “This is more than just a blip.”
Dozens of celebrities have poured into the alcohol industry and a lucky few, notably actors George Clooney and Ryan Reynolds, earned big profits after selling the brands they promoted.
Holland had been approached to back various liquor and beer brands, saying it is no secret that “every agent in the business is trying to find their client the next big celebrity brand,” Holland says. But even when he was still drinking, Holland says launching a booze brand “just didn’t sit right with me.”
About a year ago, he met with Imaginary Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund that wanted to tap the non-alcoholic beer category and cofound a new product with a celebrity that had an authentic story to tell. Around the same time, Bero cofounder and CEO John Herman was looking to work at a startup after spending years building up energy drink brand Nutrabolt, which scored a $863 million investment from Keurig Dr Pepper in late 2022.
“All generations are starting to reduce” their alcoholic consumption, says Herman. “It is going to take a few great brands to build this category.”
To February and Beyond
Non-alcoholic brands, ranging from the offerings from established brands like Heineken and upstarts including Athletic Brewing, are attempting to lure in drinkers beyond Dry January, and sales are starting to spike for other holidays including Christmas, the Fourth of July, and newer social movements like “Sober October.”
Theriault says NIQ research shows that 93% of households that buy non-alcohol products also buy alcohol and that a bulk of the demand comes from boomers, Gen X, and millennials. Non-alcoholic beer sales outpace offerings from wine and spirits, the former still struggling to figure out the right flavor and the latter having some success for cocktails sold at local bars but finding it a tougher task to get consumers to mix their own non-alcoholic concoctions at home.
“The number one reason people opt for these products is they like the flavor,” says Theriault of the non-alcoholic beer offerings on shelf.
Bero’s drinks are what’s known as a “near beer,” meaning they contain less than 0.5% alcohol by volume, products that are marketed as non-alcoholic across the industry. A Colorado brewery has been contracted to make Bero and the intention is to promote the brand more broadly than just those embracing sobriety.
“What really mattered to me is that this was Tom’s bet,” says Herman. “He wants to build this for the younger version of himself.”
Celebrities are starting to crowd the non-alcoholic space as quickly as they leapt into alcoholic beverages. Katy Perry, Blake Lively, and Bella Hadid are among the public figures that have launched non-alcoholic offerings over the past couple of years.
“The best brands led by celebrities are the ones that are most authentic,” says Holland. “Bero represents a fantastic opportunity to help people, like myself, who are trying to be sober or explore a life of moderation.”
The can branding is jam-packed with nods to Holland’s personal life. The Kingston Golden Pils is named after his hometown, Noon Wheat is named after his Miniature Schnauzer dog, and Edge Hill IPA is named for the school where he studied ballet as a child.
Beyond the prominent gold coloring, the labels also feature red, blue, or cream colors that match the hues found in Holland’s home.
“It has come from me, my family, and my friends,” says Holland. “What’s beautiful about our experience as celebrities is that we get to share it with the world.”