Made in Milwaukee Calypso flavored lemonade continues to grow its national reach.
The brand, which is owned by Milwaukee-based King Juice Co. Inc., recently added 3,000 new outlets to its distribution network, including Walmart, Publix, Sheetz, H-E-B and Kroger locations.
“We are excited to announce the continued expansion of Calypso’s distribution with several leading retailers in the U.S.,” said David Klavsons, chief executive officer of King Juice Co., in a statement. “This new distribution will create availability of our Calypso brand to more consumers at a perfect time of the year as we enter the summer months so everyone can enjoy a taste of the islands.”
The expansion was fueled by increased consumer demand for Calypso’s products at retail stores, according to a news release. Founded in 1985, the brand’s portfolio includes a total of 21 flavors of lemonade, limeade and tea combinations, ranging from flagship products like the Original Lemonade and Strawberry Lemonade to newer varieties like the Lemon Tea and Coral Blast Lemonade.
With its recent expansion, Calypso’s Ocean Blue, Southern Peach and Strawberry flavors were added at more than 1,300 Walmart stores, expanding total Walmart distribution to more than 2,500 stores. Ocean Blue, Southern Peach and Island Wave flavors were added to 1,200 Publix stores; Ocean Blue, Southern Peach, Strawberry, Island Wave and Pineapple Peach were added to 250 Sheetz stores; Ocean Blue, Southern Peach and Strawberry were added to 200 H-E-B stores; and new multi-packs of Ocean Blue and Southern Peach were added to 2,000 Kroger stores.
Calypso beverages are also sold nationwide at Albertsons/Safeway, Southeastern Grocers, Food Lion, Circle K, Wawa and QuikTrip.
Last year, King Juice Co. signed a distribution agreement with Big Geyser Inc., a non-alcoholic beverage distributor in the New York metro area, bringing Calypso products to the five boroughs of New York City, along with Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk counties representing access to 26,000 outlets. The deal came after Calypso saw 33% growth in 2019 and 62% in 2020, making it the second-largest player in the shelf-stable lemonade category, behind Minute Maid.
