Shott Beverages Ltd a New Zealand company producing real fruit and coffee syrups. They are passionate about product quality, known for using only the finest ingredients and picking fruits at the peak of their season. SHOTT’s concentrates are cold brewed to lock in authentic flavors and are naturally non-GMO. Their commitment to quality and innovation just earned them a prestigious FABI Favorites award at the 2025 National Restaurant Association Show. This recognition underscores their growing influence on the Food & Beverage (F&B) industry both today and in the years ahead.
With standout products in hand, SHOTT Beverages started their export journey about ten years ago in South Korea and several other smaller markets before entering the U.S. Now, three years into their U.S. expansion and fresh off their celebrated FABI award win, we sat down with their CEO,David Shearer, to hear his reflections, lessons and key wins from growing in this competitive market.
This is a must-read for Kiwi F&B companies eyeing the U.S. market:
-
The power of the pivot:When Shearer reflected on the early days of SHOTT Beverages entering the U.S., he noted that their strategy has done quite the pivot, all for the better. There is no single path to success. Each business outcome or win can be reached multiple ways. Pivoting isn’t just necessary at times; it’s essential. Don’t just embrace the pivot, own it. It can be the key to even greater success. More than three years into the U.S. market, SHOTT Beverages continues to learn and adapt, refining their strategy and approach as they uncover new insights.
-
Local teams as strategic assets:With more than 340 million people, the U.S. offers scale like few other markets. From coast to coast, there are a variety of cultural nuances and market dynamics at play. Therefore, SHOTT Beverages developed a deliberate strategy to hire local teams. They hired people who understood the communities they were serving, could find loyal customers and knew the nuances of the local market. This approach has not only been successful for SHOTT Beverages in the U.S. but is a winning strategy they’ve stuck to across all their export markets.
-
Turning booths into business:According to Shearer, SHOTT Beverages got their start in the U.S. by “putting their flag in the soil” at a local tradeshow three years ago. Since then, they’ve attended 17 tradeshows varying in size. Whether it was a small or large tradeshow, they leveraged these events as a form of marketing and sales to generate brand awareness and leads. As a B2B brand, tradeshows became their way of making connections, finding customers and making a name for themselves. This method helped them sharpen their tradeshow strategy, one where they can now focus on a few key tradeshows each year that yield the best return on investment. What began as quantity over quality, has evolved. Another lesson in the art of pivoting.
-
Logistics, logistics, logistics:Nailing logistics has been the biggest learning for SHOTT Beverages. The U.S. is vast, not just in its population, notes Shearer, but in its geography too. It’s like Australia with its distinct dynamics across its East and West Coasts. Unlike other markets where one distributor is sufficient, the U.S. requires two, resulting in longer delivery times and higher prices. They strategically combatted this by moving their distribution warehouse to Houston, Texas, allowing them to shave weeks off their supply chain movement. They also prioritized a more sustainable, long-term strategy to manage costs, maximize profitability and to ensure they had the right supply chain.
-
For Shearer, the U.S. market represented the “holy grail” and NZTE played a pivotal role in making that vision a reality. From the start of their export journey in South Korea to today as they continue to expand their business across the U.S., NZTE has supported SHOTT Beverages with their Go-To-Market strategy, co-funding projects, business advice and more. This support enabled them to invest heavily upfront, attack the market aggressively, and achieve strong growth in the U.S.
FollowSHOTT BEVERAGES LIMITED to watch their export story unfold and to celebrate their continued, rising success in this sector and market.
New Zealand in North America
