Fredericton Maker Of ‘Cold Brew Teas’ Reaches Top Five In National Competition
FREDERICTON – Stefanie Loukes, founder of Rabbittown Beverage Co., has secured her spot in the top five of Canada’s Total Mom Pitch presented by the Scotiabank Women Initiative and sponsored by Visa Canada.
The competition was created for mothers across Canada who own small businesses and are looking to grow, network with women and get access to further funding, knowledge, and resources.
“I’m going to be honest, I had no idea I was going to get this far,” said Loukes, a mother of twin girls, aged 4. “I think that [the competition’s] goal is to empower women who have their own business. And they have done that already. Even making the top 5 feels so empowering and so cool.”
Loukes launched Rabbittown Beverage Co. in the summer of 2019. After selling cold brew coffee out of a coffee truck, Loukes began selling craft ready-to-drink cold brew teas. The drinks come in two flavours: Peach & Basil and Blueberry Hibiscus.
“I decided to put my product in a can because one of my very good friends doesn’t drink just by choice and one day we all had pints and she had a pint of water,” said Loukes. “I was like, ‘aw dude, that doesn’t look fun at all.’ ”
Loukes then investigated alternatives for non-alcoholic beverages beyond sodas and sparkling water and using her decade of experience working in the craft beer industry, she decided to position her business in order to fill that void.
Rabbittown beverages are now available in many locations across New Brunswick, including over 15 locations in Fredericton, Rogue Coffee in Saint John, and Red Herring Pub in Saint Andrews. They are also available online through Cura Marketplace.
After competing against 700 applicants, Loukes’ spot in the top 5 gives her the opportunity to pitch her product in March for a chance of winning the grand prize of $10,000 for her business and $20,000 in business services to help her business.
Loukes entered the competition in August by writing an essay. After learning she made the top 100, she had to make a video in order to sell the judges and successfully become a top 5 semi-finalist.
“My story exemplified what they wanted to do and promote and that’s really the biggest motivator for them. Is my business scalable? Is it marketable? They have certain criteria that they follow, and my business fell into all of them. They told me in my video that I’m confident about my product and I know what I’m talking about. They want to make sure that the owners and the founders know their stuff,” said Loukes.
As part of the semi-finalist prize, Loukes gets to be involved in a three-month accelerator program beginning in January along with the other four finalists. The group receives one-on-one training, group meetings, and advising with business professionals from top law firms, businesses and leaders from Google Canada.
The accelerator sets Loukes and the contestants up for the final pitch competition on March 15.
“As an entrepreneur, you never know if you’re doing okay or not,” said Loukes. “You’re always hoping it’s working. There are certain factors you can follow, but legit I was just like, ‘this is some funky cool iced tea and I want to make a lot more of it so how do I do that?’ So I think putting your name out there and setting yourself up for success is key. It’s all been very validating going through them.”
Liam Floyd is a reporter for Huddle. Send him story suggestions: [email protected].