Inside Milo’s Tea’s Billion-Dollar Success and Its Plans for Expansion

Milo's Tea has grown from a small Alabama business into a billion-dollar beverage brand as it expands production, embraces new technology, and navigates a changing consumer market. We're joined now by Tricia Wallwork, chair and CEO of Milo's Tea Company. Thank you so much for being here, Tricia. Thank you for having me. Yeah, of course. This is such an exciting product and brand now. I mean, Milo's Tea has surpassed a billion dollars in annual retail sales. That's incredible. First of all, tell us a little bit about what's been the biggest driver of all that growth. So it's very unique to have an 80-year-old business that is going through such massive growth. And it really is unique for any company and particularly in beverage. We attribute this growth to our consumer. If you look, we're driving all the growth in tea and lemonade in America. And it's because when we can get a sip on a lip, we have loyalty. our products taste the best in the category because they're all natural and they're made just like my grandparents did with three simple ingredients tea pure cane sugar and water we also have an unsweet version that's incredible to think about how you've been able to maintain the brand for so long again staying true to the original ingredients and that flavor and have it grow so much it's just amazing when you look across the beverage industry right now in terms of consumer taste, competition, demand for different types of drinks. What are you seeing out there and where Milo's really fits in there? So Milo's has some of the most loyal fans in all of beverage. We are in one out of four households in America. And if you zoom out and look at beverage generally, a lot of the beverage categories are flat to declining, whereas tea and lemonade, because Milo's is there, is growing. And I think that the American consumer really is looking for the more natural uh things that taste like homemade things that don't contain colors acids dyes preservatives and and we that's how we kind of keep that loyalty yeah i mean it's amazing thinking about that loyalty and thinking about how you're able to make the product get it out there scale the business but you also have so many of these kind of conflicting other kind of macro problems in the way like tariffs broader supply chain environment how are all of these other issues affecting Milo's operations, if at all? And also, how does that affect the cost of producing and distributing your products? So, we were very blessed, and we kind of rewind even a little further. We had COVID, and now we're in this moment. So, for all U.S. manufacturers, these were huge shifts in the way we get our products out to consumers. And when COVID happened, we were ready. We had honest relationships with our supply chain so that we were able to get product onto shelf. And as we've risen to this moment, you know, we are very concerned about the American consumer, the rising cost of things. And through that journey, we've really, we've tried to push on our supply chain for them to bear some of these costs. We've also done a lot of work internally for us to try to bear some. But ultimately, you know, these costs are so high that there could be pricing to the consumer. I mean, you know, I think she's already feeling it out there. Yeah, again, there's so many of these factors that we have to consider here for every business. But again, you're still growing. You're still able to expand your footprint. What markets and retail opportunities are you really most focused on right now as you move forward? So if you were to look at the Milo strategy for the next three years, it really is to increase the occasions. We want to be one reach away for our consumers where they are, where they live, where they work, where they shop. And so we have a lot of opportunity with our core assortment to get in other channels and new categories. It's remarkable to really think about. But since 22, we have doubled our distribution and we've doubled, you know, gone from 450 million in revenue to this really exciting announcement, about a billion. And we're just getting started. Yeah, it's incredible to think about all of that growth that you've been able to have there. And when it comes to selling more, you also need to be able to make more, obviously. So talk to us about your multi-facility manufacturing enhancements, what all that expansion looks like on the production side so that they were able to actually meet this demand. So we're really proud of the fact that we have invested almost half a billion dollars over the last six years in U.S. manufacturing. These are great jobs that have fair wages with 100% employer-paid health care. And we really scaled from, like, when I became the CEO, we had 60 employees. Now we've got 1,100. And so it really matters to me, just as a human, that we are not only bringing these wonderful, delicious, consistent beverages with real ingredients to our fans, but that we're creating great U.S. jobs where we have a culture of people first. And so it gives me a lot of pride. You know, when I get to walk the plant floor, we've opened a facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma in the height of COVID-2020. It was our second manufacturing facility. And since then, we have opened another large facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina. So we have four manufacturing facilities that run 24-7, 363 days a year. Wow, that's a lot of production to keep up with there. But again, as you mentioned, so important making sure that your employees are taken care of, health benefits, pay, all of that. When you think about a tea company, a lot of people don't really think about technology maybe as the first thing off their lips. When it comes to manufacturing, though, how has technological innovation really changed how you've been able to make and then also distribute your products? It is truly remarkable what the AI and all of the innovation that has come to market over the past five, six years is enabling us to do on the plant floor. So we have a system that has automated what we used to put on pieces of paper, and then we can leverage that data and also use it to train and upskill our plant associates to do more than we ever thought possible. And the outcome of that work, if we're talking about the plant floor, is that we're able to make more with no more investment, right? Your throughput means that you can make more cases with the same workforce and the same pieces of equipment because you're more efficient and effective. It also allows our associates to grow and do more in their roles. So it has been very instrumental for us. We also implemented a new ERP a few years ago, and the pre-work for that was getting our data clean and right. So as this past, you know, the AI stuff is coming up, it's enabling us to leverage our clean data to see, you know, what's going on in the business, to look under the hood and not have to wait for this to happen and this to happen. We can democratize that so everyone can do their jobs faster and better. Yeah, it really seems like in all industries, but especially in something like this, where you have this kind of manufacturing piece of the puzzle, that AI data and all that modern manufacturing is so important. But how do you balance that and all this new technology with also preserving the traditions that made Milo such a legacy brand, again, being around for so many decades? Well, thank you for asking that. You know, it really is humbling to me that we still live by the founding values of my grandparents. you know always listening to your customer never sacrificing taste and and quality and the way that that has shown through in our business what we call it today people first and and that's putting all the people in our ecosystem um ahead of profit and ahead of you know quick fixes to go sell more when you're gonna do things where they're not people first and so that lens really permeates everything that we do and our cultural values are things that we don't uh um ignore and so we call it the Milo's hat and it means working hungry entrepreneurially agile and so change is part of our culture and together valuing team before self and yes you get a hat when you start at Milo's and yes we recruit on it we coach on it and we also separate on it because that's not the right step for some people. And it's really important to us that that thread for generations to come is part of who we are. Yeah, that culture is so important as you're building a business and keeping one going for so long. As you look to the future here, you've talked a little bit about this. Tell us more about your vision for Milo's Tea from here for the rest of the year, for the next year, a couple years as you move forward. What do you really want this company to look like as it enters this next chapter of growth? So the billion-dollar announcement is not the period. It's just the beginning. We have the playbook of our core business that we have built, and we're going to keep doing that, and we're going to keep doubling down on our culture, on our delicious taste with real ingredients. But there are so many opportunities to innovate, to be truly one reach away for our fans and our communities where we all live and work. And so we're really just getting started. There are so many opportunities for us to grow. in new channels and new occasions. Well, congratulations again on hitting that incredible benchmark. And we really appreciate you taking the time to break it all down with us today. Tricia Wallwork, chair and CEO of Milo's Tea Company. Thank you so much for being here. Thank you for having me.