Pitching themselves as the “Latino High Noon” may have gotten Casalú, a rum-based ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail, into retailers, but that doesn’t paint the whole picture.
Miami-based Casalú comes from three college friends – Gabriel González, Ricardo Sucre and Gustavo Darquea – immigrants from South America who studied together at North Carolina State University, where seeds for the idea of a rum-based canned cocktail were first planted.
“We see kids growing up listening to Bad Bunny in Spanish, which is a wild shift from 15 years ago. And despite that happening, we still feel there is no brand representing that modern generation of Latinos in this ready-to-drink space,” said co-CEO González.
The Gen Z team saw a window: a lack of brands with an “authentic narrative” connecting to Latino consumers, a group resistant to hard seltzers or RTD products compared to the American market as a whole. Plus, a wave of Latin American music and flavors dominating in pop-culture, beyond Spanish speakers.
Casalú’s rum and soda seltzers in Límon (lime) and Maracuya (passion fruit) can now be found on the shelves of major chains, but the founders view their work as something bigger than flavors: a platform based on Latino identity.
From Startup To Chain Retailers
After winning a pitch to the NC State Startup Accelerator, an investment tool for current students and alumni, the Casalú founders got started on a canned cocktail that they thought could replace the vodka sodas and beers they saw at parties.
Approximately 25% of Gen Z is Latino, and about 65 million people in the U.S. identify as Hispanic or Latino. Those stats seemed promising for a rum cocktail.
“Mexico and Central America are huge consumers of rum, so connecting with the flavors that we have, it’s pretty easy,” González said. “I think it’s a misconception that Mexican consumers would only connect to tequila.”
The company began by making “every mistake in the book,” González said, from starting without a distributor, to debuting with one single-flavor 4-pack. But they still won over buyers from Total Wine & More, and subsequently picked up Breakthru Beverage as a distributor in Florida in 2023. Since then, Casalú has hit the shelves of Fresh Markets in Florida, Dixie Liquors, and is soon to be in Walmart and Whole Foods Markets. Retail pushes are now expanding from Miami into Tampa and Orlando, the first and second biggest RTD markets in Florida.
“What’s been challenging from an industry perspective is you can have the right brand for the right consumer, but if you’re not in the right retailer, then your effort is kind of futile,” González said.
Next up for the brand is determining geographic expansion. Texas is a logical next step, and the group’s old stomping grounds of North Carolina is a possibility. González is convinced they can find Latino hubs that other brands marketing to Latinos are missing.
“Think about a market like Tennessee or North Carolina– you still have a lot of Latino density, but no one is really trying to speak or connect with you,” he said.
The inroads into chains, where RTD volumes dominate, has given Casalú the leverage it needs to grow, banking $2.5 million on convertible notes over the last few months, with a current round priced at $1.2 million. The round is led by Tom Reeg, the CEO of Caesars Entertainment, and other investors include Tom Baker, founder of Mr Black and Rodney Williams, the former CEO of Belvedere.
That boost will go towards building in-store visibility, expanding flavors (a four-flavor variety pack is due in September), and scaling up what’s already working with its marketing.
Building A Latino Platform
Casalú is taking a different approach to its story and marketing than the Mexican beer brands who González says were focused on a more “for us, by us” angle. Casalú is aiming to be “a platform for Latinos who are doing great things” and is exploring what it means to build on Latino identity, but spread to audiences in different demographics.
“We’re the type of brand that you’ll see releasing things that normally wouldn’t be typical for a product in our category, from a soccer jersey all the way to furniture, as a way to expand the storytelling, which is our biggest thing,” González said.
From the beginning, Casalú has collaborated with Latino content creators and musicians, driving product sales through comedy or local to big artists. Danny Ocean rocked the brand’s soccer jersey to promote his latest single, reaching 1.2 million views. A content collaboration with creator couple Shakti & Eliú on a white elephant skit hit more than 1 million views. Partnering with local Florida Spanish-language creators has allowed the brand to hit “amazing numbers” while saving on higher-priced influencers or celebrities, said Gonzalez.
As for their audience, converting beer drinkers to RTDs is still part of the equation, but the lower hanging fruit is shifting Latino RTD drinkers to Casalú.
The goal now is “to hit numbers that make sense and plant our flag and say Casalú is a brand that should be taken seriously,” González said. “It’s not only a Florida brand and this is just a hint of what’s coming next.”