To continue the conversation from the last post, we’ll move from food to (mostly) beverage. If you live on the coasts or keep a finger on the pulse of food trends, the explosion of juice comes as no surprise. These businesses are also capitalizing on the healthy food movement with a large dose of media support from celebrities and tastemakers as well as films like, “Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead” which (while perhaps a bit dramatic) demonstrates the power of juicing.

Though there are several great examples of those leading the trend (Organic Avenue, Juice Press, Liquiteria, Juice Generation, Earth Bar), my personal favorite is Pressed Juicery, based here in Los Angeles. Founded in 2010, they’ve grown to 13 units already with an ambitious plan for continued growth with the help of a brand new factory in California, and targeting another factory location in New York to begin to launch locations in the city and surrounding areas. Their emphasis is on freshness, simplicity and convenience without the holier-than-thou tone. Even their branding is refreshing in a crowded category. The Pressed Juicery business model includes small retail locations as well as delivery – home and corporate, which makes me wonder if cold pressed juice could become a new fixture in corporate food service. What an opportunity that would open up in the industry, and then to even move into popular destinations like performing arts and cultural centers or arenas. Just as the coffeehouse experience shifted from luxury to everyday, I think juice could do the same.

So what’s an integral piece of the ongoing success of these brands? The next generation of consumers – Generation Z. Though the dates of what frames Gen Z varies, let’s use anyone born after 1990 as the baseline. That means the leading edge of Gen Z-ers are in their early 20s, likely in their first “real” jobs or will be soon, with a greater disposable income and greater desire for convenience items that fit into a more rigid schedule. We already know that Generation Z leans more health-conscious than Millenials or Gen Xers, (interesting article here) (and some additional insights here) so it looks like the juice category isn’t going to be slowing down anytime soon. Looking forward to these concepts making inroads toward middle America soon, as the healthy fast-casual concepts have already begun.

Are you into the juice craze? Or do you think it’s another flash-in-the-pan that will soon go the way of all the cupcake shops? Let me know what you think in the comments!