Yanni Hufnagel is a new beverage entrepreneur developing innovative products for over 20 years. He founded the company that developed the original lemon-flavored water drink in the US. He named it Lemon Perfect and started selling it on a limited scale through his website, natural-sweeteners.com.
Wholesale sales of the original lemon-flavored water drink were so successful that Lemon Perfect is now the leading brand in the US regarding lemon-flavored beverages. Its CEO, Yanni Hufnagel, says it’s now available worldwide at over 4,000 stores. These include prominent household brands like Whole Foods, Walgreens, and Rite Aid.
Lemon Perfect also has a licensing agreement with a significant US beverage manufacturer, which makes it available throughout North America. Hufnagel says distribution has benefited from a substantial promotion given by PepsiCo. The beverage was featured in 2007 as the official drink of EssenceFest, an annual music event attended by more than 600,000 people.
For a time, Lemon Perfect was featured on the covers of major US magazines such as US Weekly and People, but Hufnagel says he was not happy about this because it wasn’t the fruit juice that was the product’s strong point.
The brand has won several awards, including “Best New Beverage” at The Beverage World Expo (BWE), held annually in Las Vegas. The BWE is a leading trade show in which more than 150,000 people participate.
Hufnagel says he’s a big believer in giving back and, having worked at a non-profit organization, has seen firsthand the positive results that can be achieved when you give to the right causes.
Hufnagel says he’s very excited about future developments for the Lemon Perfect product. He believes there will be a significant move into the sports and refreshment sector in the US. He also plans to bring the product to other markets, such as the Middle East and South Africa.
Hufnagel is also working on developing new products in the market for carbonated water. He believes his development will succeed in North America, Europe, and China.