Episode Details
Back to EpisodesBuilding a Smarter Beverage Business - with Waiākea's Daniel Kleinkopf
Description
This week, Dave speaks with Daniel Kleinkopf, VP of Marketing & Technology at Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Beverages.
Daniel shares how Waiākea is growing across ecommerce, retail, Amazon, international expansion, and brand marketing — while staying grounded in its core pillars of health, sustainability, and ethical impact.
The conversation covers how Waiākea thinks about content by channel, why the brand leans on authentic Hawaiian creators and athlete ambassadors, and how the team is using AI across the organization — from everyday productivity to supply chain and inventory decisions.
Topics covered:
- Waiākea’s brand story and sustainability mission
- Ecommerce, Amazon, and DTC strategy for beverage
- Content creation across retail, ecommerce, and social channels
- The Japan launch and adapting messaging for local markets
- Athlete ambassadors and creator partnerships
- Practical AI use cases across marketing, operations, and supply chain
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Theme music: "Happy" by Mixaud - https://mixaund.bandcamp.com
Producer: Jake Musiker