Hey {{first_name}} ,

This week, Boots made a bet on a brand new category: Korean pear juice you drink before a night out. Plus, we sat down with Naomi Partridge, Co-Founder of Holos Kombucha, whose limited edition Mulled Spice sold 3x its forecast last Christmas and is back with a 1990s themed campaign. They tells us what year one taught them, why they chose nostalgia and how to judge whether a seasonal launch is worth it.

Elsewhere, Freja bone broth lands in its first Boots stores, MOJU takes aim at the supplement aisle with a Tube ad, and Spoon Cereals teams up with Wildfarmed on regeneratively farmed granola.

Let's get into it 👇

Aisle One: Mulled Spice won Best New Concept at the 2026 FoodBev UK Soft Drinks Awards and picked up a Great Taste star. Now it's back for a second year. What did you learn from the first run, and what did you change this time?

Naomi: “Last year, the popularity of our Limited-Edition Mulled Spice kombucha actually took us by surprise - we sold out 3 times forecast, and 50% of DTC customers were brand new to Mulled Spice! We've unpicked what made it so popular, and one of the keys was this: taking something comfortingly familiar, and giving it a unique, relevant twist. So for Mulled Spice, festive flavours of cinnamon, orange and clove normally found in sticky, sugary, mulled wine in a totally new format, using the magic of fermentation to create a chilled, sparkling, complex, low sugar and gut-friendly drink. This brought that festive celebration moment to a more mindful, health-conscious drinker. We've achieved certified Organic status for this year, bringing it in line with the rest of our chilled range. It will be available across more wholesalers as well as a few beacon accounts, so will be reaching and recruiting a wider audience.”

Aisle One: This year's campaign, Good Tidings, is set in the 1990s rather than a classic Christmas. Why nostalgia, and what made you land on that decade?

Naomi: “Nostalgia is a mega theme this year, but what's interesting is why. Beneath the playfulness is a really serious message: how can we get back to being present to each other as human beings? With the evolution of modern technology, including concerns about AI and a sense of always being 'on', there is a longing for a simpler time. This is particularly pertinent for the last couple of generations before the digital natives, and in particular, those who came of age around the 90s, the last 'unrecorded' decade free from the influence of social media. And why is that relevant for Holos? Well, that is our primary target market and now the household shopper. So it's the perfect moment for us to reach them, offering a bit of feel-good nostalgia, recognisable music moments and online/in person activations. And of course, it's a time our founders can also relate to, and bring to life with playful ease.”

Aisle One: Your team wrote thousands of handwritten Good Tidings postcards for the DTC boxes. How did that idea come about, and was it worth the time for a small team?

Naomi: “We have always been Brewed for Good™, with a social impact of providing paid work for survivors of exploitation and trauma. But we realise that many people feel powerless with such a big social justice issue, and we certainly don't want to feel 'preachy' or worthy. So, whilst we personally continue with our impact work, we're finding more moments to connect to the bigger idea of 'G●●D' that everyone can participate in. So we hope to spark some encouragement through Good Tidings, and handwritten cards is a fun part of our own story which we'll share in due course. We have been laughing as founders with a pile of postcards at home after we put the kids to bed. We hope it's worth it, but this 'good' that we are trying to spark is more nebulous than organic socials can track. Our learning around impact is that sometimes it's about doing something you hope is good and trusting it seeds something. Maybe it changes someone's day. Maybe they pass on that good. Mission accomplished. However, our Good Tidings campaign does have a secret component coming out mid-November with a 'feel-good' element that is a brand build to drive awareness and ROS, and that we'll be tracking more closely.”

Aisle One: Mulled Spice is already flying across retail, wholesale and DTC. What does it take to get a seasonal drink ready for all three channels at the same time?

Naomi: “It looks like starting at Easter! And maybe even earlier next year. To be honest, there's more channels we would have hoped for but this is a great build from where we were, it will help us reach more widely and we have some beacon stockists that we're excited about featuring in our Good Tidings campaign. As we manufacture our drinks ourselves, it is like running two businesses at the same time across commercial and ops, and communication across all parties is critical because everyone is working to different timescales. Luckily we have a dedicated and brilliant team who really believe in the product, would be impossible without that!”

Aisle One: If a brand is thinking about a seasonal launch, what would you recommend they get right before they commit?

Naomi: “We actually looked at doing a summer launch this year, had a fab concept, but just weren't happy with the taste. So number one: it has to taste good! This is all obvious stuff but the big thing to assess with anything new is about what is the opportunity cost? What 'no's' will we have to say? Q4 works well for us with a seasonal launch because it is generally a slower season for chilled functional health drinks, so we're driving more demand in a quieter quarter. However, in the summer we have more to weigh up. Other questions: Is it taking you away from your core or adding to it? Is it coherent with your brand strategy? Is there an informed demand or consumer trend that this speaks into? Is it sustainable for your resources? Could you test small? Resisting the wrong shiny new thing is important!”

'Til next week