In a Mocktail-Filled World, Ghia Brings the Spirit
Photography by Amanda Charchian. Courtesy of Ghia
Mélanie Masarin
In a Mocktail-Filled World, Ghia Brings the Spirit
By Bonnie Langedijk
The thought of attending a social event without a drink in hand leaves many feeling uneasy. We often believe alcohol can help us unwind after a long day at work, or make us feel more confident when meeting someone new. But does it really love us back? With alcohol being one of the only substances left unquestioned, some are challenging the status quo and reevaluating their relationship with drinking. Moderation or stepping away from alcohol for an extended period of time used to raise eyebrows but change is afoot.
Across the board consumers are opening up their minds and wallets to the spirit-free category. The low-to-no beer, cider, wine and spirit market surpassed $11 billion in 2022, up from $8 billion in 2018. The category grew over 7 percent in volume across 10 key global markets in 2022 including Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Africa, the UK and the US. When we zoom in on the US market, the non-alcoholic spirits segment is growing rapidly. The market is worth $5.03 million, up 88.4% from a year earlier.
Someone who saw the potential of the market early on was Ghia founder Mélanie Masarin. Having never been a big drinker herself, Masarin was frustrated with the offering in the NA market. With most drinks within the category tasting like kids fruit juice rather than a spirit-free option for adults, Masarin decided to create a brand that mirrors the taste profile and experience of drinking a glass of wine or apéritif. “The idea had been in front of me the whole time. I had been complaining about having nothing to drink for three years. One day I thought: Instead of complaining about it, why don't I look into it? I became obsessed with it. I knew exactly what I wanted it to taste and feel like.” Masarin launched her spirit-free brand Ghia in 2019, with the goal to change how we think about drinking and socializing with a drink inspired by Mediterranean culture and the summers she spent with her family in the South of France. But we’ll let her tell you all about it herself.
Photography by Nacho Allegre. Courtesy of Ghia.
Photography by Alex Paganelli. Courtesy of Ghia.
Bonnie: Let’s start off at the beginning. Were there any specific people or experiences in your early life that led you to where you are today?
Mélanie: I grew up in France. My parents lived in Lyon and every summer we'd go meet the rest of my extended family in the South. I was very close to my grandmother who lived in the South. We would cook together and she would always make these little spritzes. She was potentially the most influential person in my life.
“It’s a way to TRANSITION into play before a meal, with a spritz, a rose, a dry wine or a Pastis. But the focus wasn’t necessarily on getting drunk.”
Growing up within that Mediterranean lifestyle, was alcohol a big part of the culture?
Mélanie: Very much. When 5PM rolls around, everyone stops working. There's this culture of aperitivo, of always celebrating. It’s a way to transition into play before a meal, with a spritz, a rose, a dry wine or a Pastis. But the focus wasn’t necessarily on getting drunk. If you mix a Pastis, you can mix it with more water if you want it to be lighter and you can have several of them. There already was this culture of low ABV in a way, but people hadn’t labeled it yet.
It’s interesting how every country has its own drinking culture. Have you seen many cultural differences to how people approach alcohol between the US and Europe?
Mélanie: We’ve seen an acceleration of the non-alcoholic movement in general. More non-alcoholic drinks are popping up on menus and it’s become a more established category that people respect. And it’s not just happening in New York and LA. Sure, they’re very much driving the industry but we also have solid markets in Chicago, Texas and are growing in the Pacific Northwest. I believe Europe is actually a little behind. I find it very hard not to drink in Paris, because I’m only ever drinking water. Some hotels or bigger hospitality groups offer non-alcoholic menus, but they’re still very mocktail juice based, which as a consumer isn’t what I’m looking for in terms of flavor.
Photography by Plainsight Studio. Courtesy of Ghia.
Photography by Nacho Allegre. Courtesy of Ghia.
Could you speak a bit more about that flavor and experience you're trying to build with Ghia?
Mélanie: I believe the first drink is the most important because that’s when alcohol is seen as a social lubricant. We developed the formula by thinking about when you’re sitting down at dinner. Thinking about your friends ordering wine. They’ll say: “I want something dry” or "I want something minerally, something not too sweet, maybe not a Chardonnay.” I always wrote these things down and I realized the dryness of an apéritif is what makes it an apéritif. It’s what makes it an adult drink. If you’re ordering a very sweet mocktail, sure you may have a drink in your hand, but you don’t feel the same way.
You don't want to feel like the kid with the fruit juice.
Mélanie: Exactly.
What used to be most challenging if you didn’t drink was, as you mentioned, the lack of options. The brands within the non-alcoholic space didn’t feel as considered. Consumers are so considerate when they choose the brands and products that exist in their life, and those choices need to be representative of who they are and fit into their lifestyle seamlessly. Especially since most of us share those choices publicly.
Mélanie: Definitely. You want something that will make you proud. Especially for our generation, everything is so much more branded and curated. You want to associate with brands and companies that reflect your values and reflect your aesthetic. That's why it was really important for us to nail the design aspect of Ghia.
Completely. How did you approach building the brand?
Mélanie: It was important for me to keep it playful because we wanted it to be a happy drink. When you think about bar culture and what you find on the shelf, much of it reads craft and seriousness. That’s just not us. We wanted a bold flavor, something original. The truth is [as the non-alcoholic beverage offering was so limited] we didn't have codes to fit within. We didn’t want to be seen as less than an alcohol brand. So we had to be irreverent and unapologetically loud. We wanted signs of old times, but also something that would be relatively modern and new in a way.
I think the branding around alcohol brands has also remained the same because a large part of the market is still focused and targeted towards men. There’s a big opportunity to create brands within the alcohol and non-alcohol space that appeal to a different kind of customer. In terms of positioning, do you see Ghia competing with alcohol brands, or do you see the non-alcoholic market as your main focus?
Mélanie: About 85% of our customers identify as a drinker and are seeking moderation. In terms of competition, it depends on how you define it. I think of competition as any time a customer has to make a purchase decision that involves drinking.
Maybe a bit of a personal question, but have you never been that interested in alcohol?
Mélanie: I've never been a big drinker. Of course when I was a teenager there were a few occasions when I drank too much. But I wouldn’t really have more than two glasses anytime I went out. A few years back I started to look into the correlation between drinking and how it made me feel. I just feel much better when I don’t. I’ll joke that I’ll have an annual Martini because never say never. I don’t like to label myself as being sober. I’m not someone who’s in recovery or dealing with addiction. Sometimes this movement can be a little polarizing to the sober community.
Photography by Ben Biondo. Courtesy of Ghia.
It’s interesting because it’s one of the only substances that isn’t scrutinized. It’s almost questioned more when you don’t drink.
Mélanie: It's crazy. But it's true. I do believe that what’s changing now is that it will be easier to have a positive impact on the people around you. I feel more confident now saying that I don’t drink around pretty much anyone. I’ll often see people will also order something non-alcoholic or water. That was the sign that encouraged me to really go after it.
It can be such a positive. Especially once there are more options that are as delicious and give a similar experience as an alcoholic drink would provide. Since launching Ghia, what would you say have been some of the key ingredients to creating a successful business?
Mélanie: First and foremost it’s the product. And I’m not someone to say if you make a great product, it will sell because as a former marketeer I know that’s not the case. It’s a pretty crowded space now. There’s a lot of brands that aren’t doing well because they were sloppy with product development. It really is what’s inside that counts. Beverages are high volume, low margin repeat businesses. You have to make sure people come back again and again and again. They will be more likely to do so if you have a great customer experience and an outstanding product that they feel really good about drinking. That was the hardest thing for us.
In what way?
Mélanie: Making a formula from scratch within a very new category leaves you with a lot of things to figure out. All the alcohol experts aren’t food scientists that can keep a formula extremely stable. Once we had the formula we were in a great place, but that was the trickiest part. We also launched in the depth of Covid. That was a huge hurdle. We initially wanted to introduce the product through the culinary community to build credibility and legitimize it. We wanted to show that it wasn’t juice or something that’s for kids. It’s something that's meant to be paired with great food in your favorite restaurants. But we had to pivot and launch online, without being able to get people to taste it.
It’s tricky when there’s no blueprint, because you have to answer many questions. How does it taste? How does it look? So many other businesses have examples or templates they can use as a starting point.
Mélanie: Exactly. It was probably a good thing, because it allowed us to carve our own path. When I started working on it, there wasn’t anyone on the market. While we were working on Ghia, Kin Euphoric launched. Obviously they’ve been doing very well, but they’re more in the realm of function over flavor. One of the issues I’ve had since the beginning is that it doesn’t taste the way it looks, so we’re continuously working on the formula. We’re actually relaunching our bottle very soon with some of these changes.
I get what you mean. You have to do a lot of storytelling as a brand for the consumer to understand a completely new category. Do you think there are any misconceptions around the non-alcoholic beverage industry and is there anything that excites you or frustrates you about the market?
Mélanie: A lot of people think it's a low quality product that's for sober people. They think it’s the vape of smoking. I'd like to contest that statement. The growth of the market and the attention that it's been getting is obviously very exciting. I receive so many individual notes from people every week saying that Ghia has helped them X, Y, or Z and it's so gratifying. That trumps any of the negatives.