Bonnie Hatcher is the Managing Director of ZAG Drinks.
ZAG is a new and entirely unique soft drink designed for adults who want to socialise without alcohol. With over 10 years spent working in marketing for brands including Boden and Be Military Fit (formerly British Military Fitness), she works alongside ZAG’s co-founders, Fraser Duncan and Jerry Goldberg.
- Tell us a little bit about your business…
ZAG is a non-alcoholic adult soft drink; the business was co-founded by Fraser Duncan and Jerry Goldberg two years ago after recognising, as consumers, that there were no unsweet adult drinks that didn’t contain alcohol nor compromise on flavour or ingredients
Rather than attempting to replicate an existing alcoholic drink, ZAG offers an entirely new and unique flavour; blending familiar refreshing flavours such as cucumber, mint and citrus with less common, more adult flavours including green tea, natural hemp flavouring and kombucha.
ZAG is a game-changer for health-conscious consumers: it’s low calorie, refreshingly light and healthy and is the perfect refreshment for when you’re not drinking or wanting to cut back, whilst enjoying a social occasion.
- How did you get into the industry?
Following a career in marketing, I set up a marketing agency, Unicorn Studio. ZAG was referred to the agency through another client, and we worked together on a number of campaigns in the very early stages of ZAG’s inception.
In the very same week that I’d taken the decision to retire the agency, ZAG offered me the Managing Director position. Knowing the team so well by then and loving the brand as much as I did, I jumped at the opportunity!
- What are the biggest opportunities and challenges in your industry?
Launching a new brand with a completely different and unique flavour into an entirely new drinks category is not a challenge for the faint hearted! It’s a huge education and awareness challenge, often snubbed by late adopters and traditionalists.
Our passion, and where the joy and opportunity lies, is in finding those forward thinkers who, like us, recognise that there is a missing product category for socialising without alcohol – ZAG and the ‘Social Softs’ category address this. It’s truly game-changing and we’re here leading from the front; it doesn’t get much more exciting than that!
- How would you describe your leadership style?
Given the size and age of the business, I adopt a largely participative approach where I get stuck in alongside everyone else and am able to hear and share ideas openly.
- How do you get the most out of the people who work for you?
Hire people better than you! Find great people who can do the things you’re not good at, treat them well, don’t let them go. They’ll flourish, you’ll flourish and therefore, the business will flourish too!
- What are the most crucial elements to your business running smoothly and being successful?
As a new business with a small team, it’s crucial that we constantly review our priorities and do what we do do really well. We have huge ‘to do’ lists with new ideas, tasks and challenges being added daily – we’ll never reach the end and if we try to do it all, our quality will slip.
So instead of looking at what we’re not doing, we pick the areas we believe will have the biggest impact. And, because of our size, we can be agile to new ideas and changing priorities. We know it works because every day we feel the business moving forward as we learn, tweak, adjust our priorities.
- How has the past 12 months been for you?
Ever-changing! Covid allowed us the time to re-group and re-prioritise which was hugely beneficial. Since then, we’ve been trialling, testing, learning and adapting.
- What will the next 12 months look like for your business?
Alongside growing both the brand and our team, it’s our aim to continue to educate both consumers and trade contacts around the importance of offering a diverse range of non-alcoholic drinks that cater to a broad spectrum of preferences and palettes, which fall under our brand new drinks category: ‘Social Softs’.
Non-alcoholic drink menus should be prioritised just as much as alcoholic choices and we’re determined to be change drivers within this area of the industry. We’re taking the pressure out of social occasions by offering a healthier, tastier alternative to other drinks on the market and are really excited to explore new avenues, flavours and more in the coming months – watch this space!
- What are the highlights of your career so far?
There’s no better feeling than seeing others succeed and grow when you’ve supported them. I’ve found myself seeking this buzz in everything I’ve done: from running my fitness bootcamp and seeing the same people come back week after week getting stronger and fitter to launching a marketing agency and watching small businesses grow – nothing compares!
In some cases, our clients would come to us with just a business idea – not even a business name – and to see those clients who we branded, launched and supported in their early years now selling internationally is awe inspiring.
- What’s the biggest business mistake that you’ve learnt from?
Not recognising the importance of taking breaks and time out – leading to burnout. Are you working efficiently and productively or are you just a busy fool?
Forced creativity rarely drives the best results so although it can be counter intuitive when you’re racing deadlines, taking a break from your work for fresh air can double your output the moment you sit back down. A rested, clear head can make game-changing decisions!
- What’s the best piece of business advice you’ve been given?
Use the 80-20 rule! It’s so important for a small business. Referring back to what I said earlier about priorities, 80% of output results from 20% of input so identify your 20% and make that your priority for ultimate productivity.
