The Story of My Five: From Text Chain to Vodka Brand

When five friends joked about wanting their favorite vodka water drink available in a can, most people would have laughed and moved on. Instead, Dawn and her girlfriends sketched a business plan on a cocktail napkin and transformed their group chat name "My5" into Maryland's fastest-growing ready-to-drink beverage company.

The journey wasn't simple. Dawn shares how securing alcohol licenses took nearly a year, with federal approvals surprisingly coming easier than state permissions. Finding manufacturing partners and perfecting recipes took months of dedication, but the results speak for themselves. In less than a year since their November launch, My5 Beverage has expanded to over 77 locations throughout Maryland.

What makes My5 stand out in the crowded beverage market? While most competitors focus on carbonation, My5 proudly advertises "no bubbles" on every can. The drinks feature all-natural flavoring, real cane sugar instead of artificial sweeteners, and gluten-free corn-based vodka. Their signature "OG" flavor draws inspiration from Maryland's beloved egg custard snowball, creating an instant connection with local consumers.

As women business owners in the male-dominated alcohol industry, Dawn and her partners have faced unique challenges. But they've used any resistance as motivation, proudly embracing their identity as a women-owned, Maryland-based company. The overwhelming community support has been reciprocated through local sponsorships, donations, and active participation in regional events.

With goals to reach 200 Maryland locations by year-end and eventual expansion along the East Coast, My5 demonstrates how friendship, determination, and local pride can become a powerful business foundation. Their story reminds us that sometimes the best business ideas come from everyday conversations among friends who aren't afraid to take risks together.

Try My5 for yourself at one of their many Maryland locations and experience what happens when five friends decide to bottle their favorite drink and share it with the world.

✋✨ Good vibes & high fives! ✨ Follow their @my5vibes

 to keep up with all the tasty sips 💛 

Check out their drinks at myfivevibes.com

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to My5 and Dawn
• 9:28 Origin Story: From Text Chain to Business
• 14:19 Navigating Licensing and Manufacturing Challenges
• 25:05 Women-Owned Business in a Male-Dominated Industry
• 28:35 What Makes My5 Stand Out: No Bubbles, All Natural
• 35:21 Community Support and Future Growth Plans

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hey friends, and welcome to Mom Talk Maryland. I'm your host, Claire Duarte, founder of the Columbia Mom. And this is your spot for real conversations, local love, and a whole lot of community. Whether you're folding laundry, running errands, or hiding in your car for some peace and quiet, let's dive in. Alright, you ready to get started? I guess. Let's do it, let's do it. So I'm really excited to have on today my friend Dawn. And um I've actually known you now for a couple years. And um I'm so excited to finally have you on the podcast. Um, you can see we have some of our, I call them my accessories for today. Um, no, we're not doing a live taste testing, but maybe that could be the next one.

SPEAKER_01: 0:42

Maybe it could be.

SPEAKER_00: 0:45

We'll record that outside or some other fun. Yeah, by the pole when it's warm. Exactly. I know. If that hopefully that will come back at some point. I don't know. We've had a rough summer, haven't we? We really have. Very wet. I know. My husband quickly reminded me, he's like, we haven't had the rubber sprinklers all summer. I'm like, yeah. Um, well, you know, I love an origin story. So um, I mean, first of all, I want you to tell us a little bit about yourself. Tell us, we I mean, we're really here to talk about my five and you, of course, but I want to know. I mean, part of obviously why I, you know, started the coming one in the first place is I kind of I love to know what you know, obviously your history, your background, what kind of led you to this point? Because obviously I know some of your beginnings before this a little bit, and um, but how how did my five come about? And just give me all the details about that.

SPEAKER_01: 1:41

So, oddly enough, it started with a group chat, like we and I have this thing about my text messages that I have to name them. So I I have a thing about organization, so I have to name them so I know where they are. Um I this is nothing like I what I've done ever done before. Yeah. I mean, deciding to do an alcohol beverage is like it's still it's still crazy to me that I'm actually doing this. Right. So I my background, I ran a law firm for I was a office manager for 25 and a half years.

SPEAKER_02: 2:19

Amazing.

SPEAKER_01: 2:20

And then it just wasn't. It just, you know, you get to that point where it was good until it wasn't. Right. And so I decided I was gonna leave and I was gonna start B4. Yeah. You know, so I started B4 homemade, which is my own business that I do still. And then um, so I've been doing that for four years now.

SPEAKER_00: 2:46

And you've been a participant of our giftaways. You've maybe like my local sweatshirt that is literally my staple.

SPEAKER_01: 2:52

I did, uh yes, and I was happy to do that. So then one day, you know, getting back to the text messages, we have a group girls chat that has been going for years. And the My5 logo, the M5, was actually what the icon on the text chain.

SPEAKER_02: 3:12

Oh, yeah. That's where we got our iconic.

SPEAKER_01: 3:16

Like looking back at it. Yeah, so the M5 is what was on our text chain. So it was six of us on the oddly, that makes it even crazier because it was six of us, but it was my five. Like my five girlfriends, I named it. Yes. Um, so that is where the my five name came from. Oh my god. The the start of the beverage about two years ago, a vodka water beverage became um pretty popular in Maryland, just moved into Maryland, and I had sent a message and I was like, wow, you know, because the OG is actually what I would drink when I would have a beverage. Yes, I would drink the OG. That was my um concoction. And I sent a message and said, I would so much rather have an um an OG, because that's what we would call it, because that's what I drank. So that's just how I feel about it. Um, and it really tastes like an egg custard snowball, if you know, the Maryland iconic of Baltimore I think. Right. Um so I said, I would so much rather have an OG in a can. Mm-hmm. And we just it went from there. Like everybody was, well, what would your flavor be? What would you do? What would that? So one of my partners now, yeah, we went out shopping, and then we stopped for um drinks and apps afterwards, and we just kind of started talking about it and put a business plan on a cocktail napkin. Oh my god. And the next day I'm like, we're I think I'm serious. Like, this sounds crazy to me, but I think I'm serious. And she said, I'm all in. So I just got the chills. I love that. We um put a message out there in our original because there are only three of us in this endeavor that from our original text message. Yeah. So, and then we picked up two more along the way. You had to complete the five! You know, you can't just go. No, it would have been the my three, and we make jokes about that sometimes, like when it would just be the three of us doing something, we'd say, just my three today. But so that is where the my five came from. It originated from a text chain. That's where the name came from, that is where the idea came from, and three of us just rolled with it, grabbed two others, and here we are.

SPEAKER_00: 5:49

Oh my god, I wait, I never knew like that. And this is again, this is why I love this, is why I do this because I'm like, I just nerd out and I just love like I get those chills because I just I think that's just so cool. Those that and do you still have that cocktail napkin?

SPEAKER_01: 6:03

I think Trina has the top cocktail napkin. I think you guys can still have all of our text messages. We have that's even better than the napkin. Text messages to the other two people that we were bringing in, Jenny and Lenora. They have all of the text messages. Oh my god. So we do have that. Um, Stacey has and she envisions like a board that we will take around that it will have like pictures of all the text messages.

SPEAKER_00: 6:30

So when we're doing events that no, you have to, and you need to frame the little the napkin and stuff. Yes, you can make some cute stuff like shadow boxes or yes, because it's part of us, it's where it all started from.

SPEAKER_01: 6:41

It is, and to sit here now doing this podcast and talking about it is doesn't even seem real. No. You know, when the first time you are in a restaurant and you see someone that you don't know actually drinking a beverage that is ours, we're like just that is all the all the feels so stinking cool.

SPEAKER_00: 7:04

Okay, so then talk to me again. I don't know this world like you do. I mean, I guess vice versa, right? But you know, obviously have gotten to know your brand this last year. And you and also you're so right in the way that you described the OG, because when I made my first cocktail, there was that kind of creaminess, and I'm like, you just said it so right. And now I I can't like unhear that, untaste it.

SPEAKER_01: 7:26

Right, you can't tell when you taste it, it's gonna even come through like that.

SPEAKER_00: 7:30

I'm like, literally, literally. Um, but it was so funny because like in making the peach ones this summer, my husband accidentally put them, which is good, put them out at like our Father's Day event. So, but I was like, honey, I was like, no, I literally need to like like film and make these. I had like to only a few left. I was like, son of a gun. Anyway, so yeah, clearly the peach was a great flavor. Okay, but talk to me about the journey the last two years, right? You've been growing, you've been popping up in more stores. Like, I literally know nothing about well, first of all, the beverage industry, the alcohol industry. I also hear doing doing well, doing business in Maryland, but doing alcohol business in Maryland is from what I've heard is you didn't make you picked a good product, maybe not the best state, but I mean, we're here to talk about, I mean, again, why I love that we're sitting, you know, woman-owned, Maryland-owned, mom-owned, you know what I mean? Like, like ding ding ding. So, anyways, talk to me about the journey of the last two years. Give me the good, bad, and the ugly. Like, what is it like to you go from idea, right? And it's a great idea. We all have great ideas, but then how do you actually like make it happen? Like, what happened, what happened from there?

SPEAKER_01: 8:42

So originally we had this crazy idea that we were gonna be able to do all of this right in a find a kitchen and we were gonna do it. Yeah, no, no, that was just unrealistic. No, although we did we did do our recipes. We were in a um garage and we're you know doing our recipes, and we actually bought a canner and we were canning them because we needed to know what they were going to taste like drinking them out of a can. Right, yeah. So then we started the process. We had to become a wholesaler. Yeah. So that is a whole nother thing. Trying to get licenses it with the ATCC. Um, actually, the federal government, the TTB, was very easy, which I would have thought it would have been reversed. No. Um, it took us about six months to even get our license. And then it was just one thing after another, this, here, there, you know, other businesses. So three of us are on the wholesale license. Okay. Two of us have our service solicitor's permit. So we had to go through that role too. That gives us the ability to sell in Maryland to talk about it, um, whatever. Um we just so we have a space in Howard County in Jessa, um, that took us a while to find because we had to go through all of the channels and finding there are so certain zoning that you have to so it's just one I don't want to say roadblock, but it was just one thing after another. And every time we thought we were there, nope, and then we just kept it we just had to take it with a grain of salt. We were like, yeah, things are happening for a reason. Yeah. This is this happened because this is supposed to happen.

SPEAKER_02: 10:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 10:42

So then we finally were able to secure all of our licenses that we had to have. So the next step was finding somebody to be able to manufacture and produce it for us.

SPEAKER_00: 10:52

And real quick, about from okay, from Idea, that was two years ago, right? Yes. How long from then to your licenses did that take?

SPEAKER_01: 11:01

That took it took about a year, almost a year.

SPEAKER_02: 11:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 11:06

Yeah. So we've had our licenses for a about a we're going on 16, 17 years. Yes, yeah. I was gonna say our getting close. Right. It's okay. We didn't take our first product until November, so we haven't even been, it hasn't even been a little bit of a couple of years.

SPEAKER_00: 11:22

Oh, so we we did um wow, because then we got our samples like right after. Yes. Oh my goodness, yeah. You're like, let's go!

SPEAKER_01: 11:32

I'm telling you, we are pounding the pavement, knocking on the doors, and um it's yeah, it hasn't even been a year. So what we hear, yeah, I mean, obviously that we're all learning this industry because we have none of us had that background. Yeah, we all have different backgrounds, and so from what we're hearing from others in the industry, we're doing pretty well. 77 plus locations in less than a year throughout Maryland. Uh-huh. That's a lot of knocking on doors.

SPEAKER_02: 12:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 12:07

Um, and you know, just putting yourself out there, talking about the product, get doing what we just, you know. Right. But we are, with it being locally owned, women-owned business, yeah. We do find that we've been given a lot of support.

SPEAKER_02: 12:21

That's great.

SPEAKER_01: 12:22

But we do find some challenges too, with all that as well. Yeah. Because the bigger guys.

SPEAKER_00: 12:28

Yes. And there's always, well, I know. We'll we'll get into that part in a second, which we'll we'll we'll we'll dance around it nicely too. Um, because there's always bigger fish. There's always bigger fish. It doesn't that's just life. Yes. You know, we need to meet people that are more established, more further along in their business. It's it's not even fair to do the comparison game because, again, you're just in a different stage of business, you know. But um, but wait, so going back to the timeline, you were talking about, okay, so you got your license and then you're working to find the manufacturer. Yes. So what how does that even like work?

SPEAKER_01: 13:05

So our goal was to try to keep everything that we do here in Maryland. We have our flavor company, which I didn't know anything that there were actually things called flavor houses. Yeah. And our flavor company is. You're not the flavor house. Yeah, no. We have to buy our flavoring from someone. Oh, okay. Right to get them. We needed to make sure we wanted it to be all natural, no artificial in nothing in the flavoring, and uh obviously it's water, so you can't get, you know, and we do not use artificial sweetener. So we had to find every you know, find someone that could do all of that for us. So we reached out to a company in Maryland, um, Ironheart Canning.

SPEAKER_00: 13:53

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01: 13:53

They're a Maryland company, however, they could not find anywhere here in Maryland to run our line that for what we needed to make that shelf give it the shelf light that it needs, to you know, everything that we needed to put in it to make sure that it was good for everyone. Right. So they found us this um company, it is right outside of Philly.

SPEAKER_00: 14:19

Okay, so still East Coast, yes, and I feel like shipping is probably like ideal in that yes sense.

SPEAKER_01: 14:24

So however, they travel. So our so the company that's canning us is still from Maryland, but they travel to PA. Okay, and they run the line in the um company in PA.

SPEAKER_00: 14:39

Okay.

SPEAKER_01: 14:39

And so really it's ABT, and they make our product as far as you know, they the vodka that is in there is six times distilled, the flavor, you know, they put it all together in huge bats, and then Ironheart comes in and runs the line and cans it for us. Cool. So, yes, and so then it's shipped to us from there. So it was just a matter of just researching, searching, trying to find companies that could do this for us. It took us it that took a good eight, nine months to find what we needed. So that is why it's you know, it took us a good, you know, two and a half years to find what we needed. And then once we did find them, it took a few months to get the product to exactly what we wanted. Right. We would go up there and we would try sample taste and spend days up there, you know. Yeah. And when I say spend days, we did Stacy actually spent the night one night and up there because it takes time and you, you know, so we did figure it out, and now we kind of have a good system, we know everything. Now it's just a matter of finding the flavors, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 15:52

We Right, or and then doing making the new ones. Correct. Now, when you released you had the OG, was it just the OG or did you do these two? We did those two. Okay.

SPEAKER_01: 16:02

Originally we had planned on doing three, but we could not perfect that one, and I won't disclose that one because we still won't work on that one. You will, you will, we will it's coming. So those we just decided to just go with the two. Yeah. And so that's what we did, and um, I'm glad that we decided just on the two because now we can You can build from that. Yeah, and Peach wasn't that the one that was gonna be the third one. We just are still working on that one because we need to perfect it a little bit more. So I may know.

SPEAKER_00: 16:33

I don't worry, it's locked in key because you may know. I may know. Um inside scoop. My little inside scoop. Um, and I'm still so pumped for and it it's it's gonna be one of those things. It's coming, it's you know, um it was meant to happen. That's what we just keep saying. That's right.

SPEAKER_01: 16:52

This is that's it'll come when it's supposed to.

SPEAKER_00: 16:54

I, you know, I fully believe that. I mean, I leave believe that in life, but I think you can probably relate to this so much to being now like thrust into being a full-fledged business owner, you know. Yes. Not that I mean before you gotta got your first taste with that, but it's very I don't know how to explain it, right? You to do something that kind of before was always yours. Yes, but this is just so much bigger.

SPEAKER_01: 17:16

It is. It it honestly is. I mean, you know, I still do before, that is what I do for myself. Right. Um, however, it's an industry that I had no idea about. Right. So it's all of the learning, and then having four business partners.

SPEAKER_02: 17:32

I love that.

SPEAKER_01: 17:33

And I say all the time, I'm just one of five. Because you know, with four, I make all the decisions, yeah, I don't have to run it by anybody. Yeah, you know, not that that's a problem for me, but it is it that's a learning process as well. Yes, you know, yeah, well, you know, I'm not gonna say I'm a little bit of a control freak.

SPEAKER_00: 17:52

I'm not gonna say I'm not gonna say my partners will say it. But that's what makes you successful, you know what I mean? Because you have to be, you have to have those things in business, you know what I mean? So your partners, even though if you drive them crazy, like you know, you're their asset, you know what I mean? It's kind of like I say that about my husband, who's like extremely type A, and I'm like, but I and I'm very like B plus. I can be A when I want to be, sure, and I need all the structure and systems, but I like it, I just I can't, you know what I mean? So, right, exactly. So, but anyway, the point that I was sorry, I was getting to earlier. We were talking about like things being what they'll be in the timeline, things like I feel like I can so relate to that, like you know, because when you start off with business, you have these ideas, and we think, and initially I I feel like we think that these ideas equal money or equal success or whatever, and like all we have to do is just make that idea happen, right? And then um, and then you start working on all these things, right? And then you hit roadblock after roadblock, and you're like, oh my effing. Goodness, right? And the roadblocks are definitely what I feel like are the make or break you in business, and that's where it either takes people to, you know, and I don't even won't even quite yet say that the roadblocks are quite what make people successful. I think it could it's what gives you the grit and the determination because you know you can get the license, right? But it's what you do with it. You can get the manufacturer, you get the product, but then again, there's even once you have all those things lined up, it's still what you do after all of that, you know. And I've like I can relate to two in in things in my own business where I remember last year I was gung-ho on certain things that I had in my mind or that I was I was striving for, and and then the and they didn't pan out at the time. And this year I reframed my my focus with certain things, and I was decided to, I was like, you know what, I want those things, but they're not gonna be my big primary goal chaser this year. If they come about naturally, great. But I also fully believe in, and one one approach that I took for myself um was this is going back to this being a growing and foundational year of you know, re-going back to our roots, re-making sure that that foundation is really strong, so that if and when we're ready to shoot for that again, it's gonna be easy peasy, yes, no-brainer. You know what I mean? So I love that you had my. I just sorry, that was just my little tangent. I was like, No, that's okay.

SPEAKER_01: 20:20

I and it has. Um, I think it has made every one of us stronger. Yeah. No, it's it was hard for some of us. Oh, for sure. Um, I mean, four of us women were just like, no, this has gotta happen. Because we say so, it's gonna happen. Yes, but then you just have to sit back and say, okay, there's a reason why that happened, and this is gonna push us in this direction, but this direction obviously is the way that we were meant to go.

SPEAKER_02: 20:43

I love that.

SPEAKER_01: 20:44

And we have also just all sat down and we we thought we were crazy, obviously. You have to be crazy. We still think we're crazy that we created an alcohol beverage and put it in a can. I mean, I I don't I think our husbands had all the faith in us, but they were like, honey, that's right. That's gonna happen, but it didn't. And now they're all like, oh, it happened, you know. Or like, oh it's not that didn't we? Yeah, they really knew what they were doing. Right. Um, but we did, we all sat there and we were like, okay, look, we're gonna sit here, and this was once we finally had our two flavors, and we knew they were going in the can, and we're like, okay, we're gonna sit here. And in a year, we might be like, mm, that was fun. We lost some money, but yeah, yeah, that was fun. Or we might be like, woohoo, that was fun, and I think we're heading in that woo-hoo, this is this is it, it is, it's been very rewarding, and it's been very fun. Yes, and I love my partners. They're we have we have a bond, we have a friendship, we are partners, you know, and we uh it just it's been great. Yes.

SPEAKER_00: 21:59

I love that, and you know, it's it's kind of not all f I mean not all friends can be business partners, and I think that's a pretty beautiful and unique thing that you guys could like make that transition just naturally, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 22:12

And we've learned to work, you know, it is I'm not gonna say we all agree on everything. Oh, because we don't, and if we did, that would just be weird. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00: 22:21

Well, and then like you in business you have to be challenged. We you have to like I have to tell my team too, like, you know, someone needs to disagree with me because otherwise, like I'm I'm will not be right all the time.

SPEAKER_01: 22:33

As much as my ego is to think that we are right, right, right, right. Yes, I'm brought down to size.

SPEAKER_00: 22:40

I need to be. I need to be, it's so true. Well, so speaking of that, um, so what has been your experience of building and running a locally owned, woman-owned business? And have you faced any unique challenges or found surprising advantages along the way?

SPEAKER_01: 22:57

I don't want to necessarily say found surprising advantages. I will say that I was, I guess I was surprised with how many people are like, oh my god, I want to support local. I love supporting. I know how I feel that I like to do that, but you do really find people are love our story, they want to support because we are local. We do find so many people love the fact that it's women-owned business and just want to support it. Um when, but I do find that in this industry, I don't want to say it's it can be a challenge because you do have some owners that still have that mentality that women shouldn't be in this, you know, doing this. Yeah. Um you have some people that trying to like don't want to deal with women. Yeah. They have this, oh no. Yeah. So um that has been a challenge for us because we're like, you know, if men can do it, women can do it well.

SPEAKER_00: 24:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 24:28

And we can take up space. We can. And I don't have a problem being in a man's world, you know. I don't I have never looked at it that way. No. You know, I can make my own way. Yes. You know? My four other, I should say my three other women um partners feel the same.

SPEAKER_00: 24:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 24:54

But we do have, I mean, and I'm not gonna say we do have a man that's, you know, our fifth is RJ. He's our maverick. You know, that's what we've named him. He um people think he's crazy because he went into business with four women. Right. But he has to be a little crazy. Yeah. But he supports us, you know, and he is just right along there with us, you know, that we are primarily women-owned. And he loves to support that fact and he uses that. Yeah, you know, um, so I don't really necessarily know if I'm answering this question for you. Absolutely. Um, but there have been roadblocks, I wouldn't necessarily, and challenges nef I wouldn't necessarily say it was because we are women-owned.

SPEAKER_00: 25:41

No.

SPEAKER_01: 25:42

Um but there are have been times where we're like, okay, whatever, you don't want to deal with us because we're women.

SPEAKER_00: 25:50

Right.

SPEAKER_01: 25:51

We're gonna come back bigger.

SPEAKER_00: 25:52

Yeah. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_01: 25:54

And stronger.

SPEAKER_00: 25:55

Well, and that's the other beautiful thing to think about, not just being woman-owned, mom-owned, and all of that, but like Maryland-owned. Like we pack a punch, man.

SPEAKER_01: 26:05

We do. And uh we I I feel like we find more support from that. Being locally owned, Maryland, Maryland has this thing about and they love their flag. If you notice, sweet flattery. Right, I know. It's kind of like your little like homage to it. We um yeah, I'm it's crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 26:29

It it the Maryland, I don't know how to describe it. I mean, I'm not sure. I don't either.

SPEAKER_01: 26:32

That's what I'm sitting here thinking about.

SPEAKER_00: 26:33

I know, because it's bigger than just people feel like, oh, it's just your flag. And it's yes, we love our flag. But it's not just about this vanity thing of like, oh, I like the design and the look, but there's just something about this just like Maryland blood. It's a cult, I think. It is, it's a Maryland thing.

SPEAKER_01: 26:51

I mean, I mean Charles wrote about it. I mean, thinks about it, right?

SPEAKER_00: 26:56

Yeah, I mean, it's something about like, I don't know, when I hear Maryland, all of a sudden I've got like I'm like itching. I'm like, wow, you know what I mean? Like, what is that? I don't know. I don't know, and it's just like so to me, I just feel like as soon as you hear something like, you know, Maryland owned, I'm like, you know, it might not be today or tomorrow, but like this product's gonna grow. I just know it will. I know because of who you are and who your team is, but that's like that extra layer like this is a Maryland product.

SPEAKER_01: 27:27

It's going to it I do believe that. I'm glad that it started in Maryland. Yeah, it's not where we want to keep it.

SPEAKER_00: 27:35

We I mean we I mean things have to shift. Yes, we love that it's here.

SPEAKER_01: 27:40

Yeah. Um, but we do, you know, that is one of our I know that's another topic, but I um I love that it's here. I love that it's in Maryland. Um I I I don't know really how to describe it.

SPEAKER_00: 28:00

Like, I don't know, you know, I feel like I'm like this down for me, Claire, because I know well, this is why I like having the podcast because I can just like shoot the shit and I can talk about it. Just talk about things in a deeper, more complex way. That's why I love that. Well, and kind of speaking of that, um, you've already we've already been obviously talking about the beverage, but to come back to that more specifically, the beverage industry is obviously super crowded. Yes, it is. Um, so what makes my five stand out, and how do you approach innovation when it comes to flavor, design, and the overall experience?

SPEAKER_01: 28:35

I believe there are similar products out there like ours, but not quite like ours. Yeah, I do firmly believe that we are different in this industry in the fact that there are there's no carbonation. Yes, there are a lot of beverages out there that have the bubbles. Yeah. And if you notice it says on no bubbles, no bubbles. I don't like bubbles.

SPEAKER_00: 29:08

So talk to me about that because I obviously came, it has to be part of your OG story, right? And that I think what's also what makes you so unique. And yes, there are similar products, but I think there's it's slimmer in comparison. Yes, there are only a few, and that's gonna make you so unique and be able to really stand on that.

SPEAKER_01: 29:29

Yes, and there are products that do that don't have bubbles, but they're also either lemonade or iced tea.

SPEAKER_00: 29:39

Yep.

SPEAKER_01: 29:39

So we are water, which is huge.

SPEAKER_00: 29:43

The girly should be flipping out over the exactly, you should be flipping out.

SPEAKER_01: 29:47

You're dehydrating the hydrate, right?

SPEAKER_00: 29:49

That's that's what I'm telling you. And no um artificial sweeteners, all natural, huge. All natural.

SPEAKER_01: 29:54

So, yes, so we do use real cane sugar.

SPEAKER_00: 29:58

Yep. We should not be afraid of that.

SPEAKER_01: 30:00

You should not be afraid of it. There are so many that are afraid of it, but it's not artificial. People hear the word sugar, and that's a whole different conversation. Artificial sweeteners are not, they're just not good for you. They're chemical, they're literally chemicals. Yes. Yes. So what we do use is real cane sugar, and we love the fact that, and it does, we also get a little bit of sweetness in our cans from the vodka is corn-based. Okay. So that also makes it gluten-free. Gluten-free, yes. So that's right. Yeah. So that that's a huge thing. And we did learn this past week, so many people that we talked to at the Poor Girls Open were like, wow, we love that it's gluten-free. It's huge. I know.

SPEAKER_00: 30:44

That's becoming, I mean, again, that's a whole sidebar conversation. A whole nother, yes. Um, but those are um again, you're just kind of you keep checking the boxes for to keep it unique. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 30:55

Because in this industry, you have to find a niche that you've got to get in there to make yourself a little different. Yes. So, um, and this kind of goes along with the Maryland theme again. Okay. No, right? I you can't. The OG is a flavor that originated here in Baltimore, in Maryland. The egg custard snowball, which is my fave. Yeah. And put a little marshmallow on it, so that's where the OG came from. Yeah. Um, so we're trying to make our flavors unique as well. Like that. I did not see that anywhere. The OG isn't nowhere in the industry. No, it's not. In a in an alcohol beverage.

SPEAKER_00: 31:40

Question for you. Sure. As you've navigated, whether it's licensing, manufacturing, you know, and even the sales side of it. I'm just curious, did you get pushback on people being like water? Like, why don't you just do, you know, seltzer or carbonation? Like, I'm just curious, like, did you if you got a lot of that what did you say? Unsolicited advice?

SPEAKER_01: 32:02

Yeah. So we do get that, oh, we like the bubbles. Yeah. So then I just thought, well, add some club soda. Then you can get your bubbles. That's right. Um, you're not gonna find those flavors in some of the ones that and also, sorry to cut you off. No, don't please do, because I could just ramble.

SPEAKER_00: 32:22

Right. Well, no, I was just thinking, I mean, again, when we're talking about a massive industry, there are already so many carbonated products. You don't want to be competing with another you don't want to be, there's nothing, I mean, if even if you're somebody different, you know, yes, I could sit here and say, yeah, go shoot your shot and do your thing, and you could still make it unique. Yes. But at the end of the day, like, you don't want to or need to be competing with another carbonated product. Like, this to me is innovation by itself because um it is different. You know what I mean? Yes.

SPEAKER_01: 32:58

Um, it is, and I um not I yes, there are so many seltzers out there. There, and that's what when people will say, Oh, just another seltzer. No, it's not. That it is not a seltzer. I do find that also with when you're asking if we get with pushback with the water. Right. So, like when we're doing tastings and samplings, and you know, you try to figure out how you bring these people over, and you're like, Would you like to come try our vodka and water? And people look at it like, oh, no, I don't want vodka and water. Right. So you try to, and then you use a different approach. It's a ready-to-drink cocktail in a can. But then if you use RTD, a lot of people are like, What is an RTD? It's a cocktail in a can. It's not just it's vodka, water, but there are flavors in there. So we do find a lot of people that do the vodka water. They do the Tito's, yeah, you know, yes, like um, and water, but they use those drops. Those artificial sweetener drops. Yeah. Uh-huh. So here, this is what that is. Yeah. But there's no artificial sweetener drop. It's a natural flavor that we have made for us in our flavor house.

SPEAKER_00: 34:16

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01: 34:18

Um, yeah. Am I touching on it?

SPEAKER_00: 34:21

No, oh my gosh. No, absolutely. I mean, like I said, I think like that's where I that's where I get so excited and nerd out, like, with your product, because um, again, what's funny because when because Jill obviously met you and I was like, I know Dawn. And when she's coming back to me, and I was like, oh, that's really interesting and so different. Anyways, the whole thing. But going back to like community and local rules, again, we won't stop talking about Marilyn, but no, um being local, it's such a big part of your brand, big part of who you are. Yes. And how has the community supported your journey? And what role do you hope My Five plays in the local scene? And actually, sorry, part three of the question. I'm throwing a lot at you. That's okay. Because how many you've told me this number before, but it keeps growing. Actually, you know, I cut- I'm gonna cut myself off. I'm gonna come back to that question. I was gonna ask how many um stores or inalocations you are in Howard County slash Maryland, but let's start with the community bit first.

SPEAKER_01: 35:18

Community have they were they have been incredible. And when we have some local local to us where we um, because we're all within a community, we live within five less than five minutes apart, all five of us.

SPEAKER_02: 35:33

Love that.

SPEAKER_01: 35:33

So our community has been so supportive. Um we've had liquor stores and bars and restaurants within we're from in Baltimore County, yeah. All of us overwhelming response. Um have supported us from get you know the get-go, and they still are. So we do find that our our community has totally supported us in ways that we didn't really think that we we were a little overwhelmed by it. Yeah. So we tend to want to give back.

SPEAKER_00: 36:09

I love that.

SPEAKER_01: 36:10

We try to donations, yeah, give away whatever we can do. Now, obviously, we cannot give product away. Right. Um, so we do whatever we can without doing that.

SPEAKER_00: 36:26

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 36:26

Um, but we support the little, you know, little league, um, charities. However, we can give back, right, we want to give back to the community because they have been so gracious to us.

SPEAKER_00: 36:42

Yeah. Well, and um, I mean, you've already been doing some other local events in and around the state, which has been really cool. And um do you guys have any other cool um events or sponsorship um coming up?

SPEAKER_01: 36:58

We do, so we've had one all summer actually. Start it started in April. It is um the Vortex in Catonsville.

SPEAKER_00: 37:06

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01: 37:07

They are uh outdoor concert venue.

SPEAKER_00: 37:11

Oh, cool, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 37:12

It's it's so cool. So they have a few more events coming up. Oh, that's right. There's one this Saturday, actually. Um, that will but they have concert events where they have local vendors. Um so they sell our product. So we show up because they are supporting us, they're selling our product. Yeah. So we show up at every event and we set up a stand that has our merch.

SPEAKER_02: 37:36

I love that.

SPEAKER_01: 37:37

And we do samples and fine. So that is another way of giving back. Yeah. Because they're supporting us, so we're supporting them.

SPEAKER_00: 37:44

Yeah. Oh my gosh, you have to. I love that. Um, well, Don, this has been so awesome to again hear more nuggets about your story. If um I were to paint, well, sorry, no, oh, let me come back to my question that I cut myself up. How how many, do you know how many stores or slash locations that your product is in now?

SPEAKER_01: 38:07

It's in about 70. I I say 77 plus. I think we're closer to 80, but I don't know. Um, they are all listed on our website. Amazing. So you can check that out to see.

SPEAKER_00: 38:20

That has grown so much from literally like December when I first heard about your product. That is so stinking cool. That was probably one of my favorite reels.

unknown: 38:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 38:30

The OG Christmas tree. It was. I was like, you want me to make a drink? Okay, that's fine. Um now, okay. What is your one-year, five-year vision for My5?

SPEAKER_01: 38:45

Our one-year vision, well, actually, we have a goal. We would like to, we're hoping 200 locations by December 31st. So that's a little over a year. Because November will be a year from when we took product. So I I mean, I don't think it's unrealistic.

SPEAKER_00: 39:03

No, and they always say never have it's like shoot, you know, you want um like hundred feels like too close, you know what I mean? Because then it's like they say because you'll not that you'll never reach the goal, but it's like if you set a goal that feels attainable, then you might hit under. But if you set the goal higher, right, you might surprise yourself. Correct. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01: 39:25

And that goal of 200 is within Maryland. Yeah, I love that. At the moment, we are only wholesalers, self-distributors in Maryland. We cannot sell outside of the state at the moment. That means we're all selling and shipping distributing, right? So we're okay with that. Um because grow here, plant the seeds here. This is where this this is our roots. That's okay. This is where we're all from. This is where we want to grow and start. That's fine. I think it's a great place to start.

SPEAKER_00: 39:54

Right. Nurture these ones because you know, more money, more problems.

SPEAKER_01: 39:59

Exactly. Right, either. You know, and we're all local to here. So while we're self-distributing, to be self-distributing in a different state would be pretty hard. Because we have to check in on our, you know, our vendors, and we have it is. Do we want to see that come? Absolutely. Of course. So that's the five-year plan. We would love to find a distributor that wants to take us on. Yep. Um, we don't want to obviously we will still be involved. So that's the whole, you know, we can support our product while we have a distributor doing that end of it for us. We, you know, we're not ready to let it go. No. But in fact, that is our five-year plan. We do want to see it grow outside of the state of Maryland. Yeah. But Maryland will always be our first love. Absolutely. And um, but yes, our we do have an envisioned five-year plan that we would like to be all over.

SPEAKER_00: 41:00

I love that.

SPEAKER_01: 41:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 41:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 41:02

I mean, I would love to see it up and down the east coast. Yeah. Yeah. Um, you know, I I say you can drink it anytime. Yeah. But it is a good beach drink. Oh, for sure. It's a good summer in the pool. The guys love it on the golf course.

unknown: 41:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 41:20

Our husbands take it, take it on, you know. And we uh we do want to we do have a golf course that does carry us. That's great. Yes. And um so, you know, Maryland has its seasons.

SPEAKER_00: 41:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 41:35

Not that, I mean, we will continue to find flavors that go well with all of our seasons. Yeah. But with that, we want to market it to, you know, those states that up and down the east coast that have that warmer weather right the time. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00: 41:51

So, and you'll and you'll find it.

SPEAKER_01: 41:52

Yeah, we will find it.

SPEAKER_00: 41:53

Oh my gosh. Well, I'm I'm so excited for you. And I just, I mean, now I'm like plugging with all these ideas. I'm like, we need to get you in Merryweather. We need to get you in. There is a goal. Yeah. Uh absolutely. Yeah. Oh my gosh. We will we will talk. I think you'll talk. I'm like, we don't have enough content there. I'm like, why aren't you there? We gotta get you there. We were just there. We're looking flying. We were all just like in our yeah, we were in our loved to have been drinking them up. I'll watch them, right? I know what I'm telling you. I know. Goals, girl, goes. That's right, we'll make them happen. Um, well, I love this so much. I love you, love your product. So excited for you. And you know what? In a year from now, we'll be having an entire different conversation.

SPEAKER_01: 42:39

We will.

SPEAKER_00: 42:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 42:40

And I am looking forward to it. Cheers. Cheers.

SPEAKER_00: 42:44

Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Mom Talk Maryland. If you loved it, leave a review, share it with a friend, or tag me at the.columbia mom on Instagram. I'd love to hear what you think. And don't forget to follow the show so you never miss an episode. Until next time, keep showing up, keep supporting local, and keep being the incredible mom, woman, human that you are.