They stumbled on a genius opportunity.
Jerry Rice and his family have launched the first Black-owned energy drink on the market, InsideHook reports.
Jaqui Rice Gold is a former law school student turned entrepreneur. For two years she had been pursuing her entrepreneurial goals, developing a marketplace for hair extensions. While trying to keep up with her new work-life balance pace, Rice Gold realized she had developed a slight dependency on energy drinks to make it through her daily workouts.
“I started drinking energy drinks along with tea to power myself through my late-night workouts – still trying to be healthy by working out…but tired. I was drinking whatever energy drinks were in the cold section at the gym, and I didn’t feel good about it,” Rice Gold recalled.
While she needed a cleaner option, she couldn’t find one she liked and ultimately decided she’d develop her own. That’s when Rice Gold partnered with her father and co-founder Jerry Rice and her husband Trevion Gold to create G.O.A.T Fuel energy drink, the first Black-owned energy drink on the market.
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The energy drinks are currently served in 12 packs where customers can pick their desired flavor or choose from a variety pack. Flavors also come in a range from tropical berry and blueberry lemonade to more fun flavors like gummy bear and pink candy. But what sets G.O.A.T. Fuel apart from other energy drinks is that it actually gives you energy, using natural flavors and mushrooms as the core of the drink. It’s something that Trevion Gold says other energy drinks just don’t do.
“[Other sports drinks] have been marketed as if they’re giving you energy. Technically, they’re not really giving you energy. They might help you recover when your energy is depleted, but they’re not giving you energy. People talk about being jittery and crashing [with other drinks]. With natural caffeine and the addition of these cordyceps mushrooms, you don’t have those jitters with G.O.A.T Fuel,” he explained.
The name was inspired by Rice Gold’s dad, NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, who is sometimes considered the original GOAT. Rice’s commitment to keeping up his workout regimen at his stage in life really inspired Rice Gold. Bringing him on as a co-founder of the brand was a no-brainer.
“Every morning when I woke up, I went on Instagram…and the first image I would see every morning was a selfie of my father saying, ‘Just killed my Peloton workout. Go get it GOATS!’ I was like, ‘I feel like the [weakest] person in the world because my dad is done with his Peloton workout already.’ It literally grinded my gears. He’s got a ton of energy. He’s clearly still out there, getting it,” Rice Gold recalled.
The company launched just two months before the pandemic shut everything down. It was important for them to pivot with the world, focusing their energy on getting the product into the hands of people that needed it the most, starting with first responders. For months. G.O.A.T Fuel provided free and discounted products to first responders who could verify their credentials. They also launched a similar program for students. It proved to be very fruitful.
The goal now is to continue getting the brand out there and just expanding the imprint. It’s important to Rice Gold that they hold this historic accomplishment with the seriousness necessary to sustain it. Even down to the organizational structure, they’ve tried to make sure they cover all bases, ensuring that everyone on the team gets a stake in the company and stays inspired about what’s ahead.
“It’s exciting for us to be a pioneer in this space. We didn’t really know when we got started, but once we got into our meetings…we started to notice that there weren’t a lot of people who look like us. We decided to just lean in and felt even more inspired about the opportunity ahead of us. We thought that maybe we can pave the way for others behind us,” said Rice Gold.
To purchase your pack of G.O.A.T Fuel, click here.
Photo Courtesy of GOATFuel/Instagram