About this episode

Jose Ramirez discusses the creation of HOPR, a new functional beverage category, and shares insights on entrepreneurship and community engagement.

Welcome back to the Emajin Golf Podcast: Beyond the 19th. In this episode, we sit down with Jose Ramirez, Founder & CEO of HOPR, to explore how he built a new functional beverage category from his kitchen counter. Starting with $38,000, no beverage industry experience, and a personal desire to rethink his relationship with alcohol, Jose shares how HOPR began as a home experiment during COVID and grew into a multi-million-dollar business competing in one of the most crowded consumer markets. We explore: • How Jose's own experience with alcohol sparked the idea for HOPR • Why he saw an opportunity beyond traditional non-alcoholic beer, wine, and soft drinks • What it takes to create and educate the market on a new category • How HOPR combines adult taste with functional relaxation • Why Jose chose to build the brand online instead of chasing retail from day one • How honesty, consistency, and "building in public" helped create a loyal community • The role of customers and retailers in growing HOPR organically across Australia • Jose's long-term vision to help one million Australians build a better relationship with alcohol Jose also shares the realities of bootstrapping a beverage…

People in this episode

Host: Raj Narayan

Guest: Jose Ramirez

Topics covered

• category creation
• functional beverages
• entrepreneurship
• community-led growth
• alcohol alternatives

Keywords

• HOPR
• functional beverages
• category creation
• entrepreneurship
• alcohol alternatives
• community growth
• digital marketing

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: HOPR

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