Blossom Water LLC, Westwood, Mass., announced authorization to sell its line of all-natural flavored waters in more than 750 stores this summer.
The stores are part of three supermarket chains, operating under seven banners in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States, as well as one convenience store chain operating throughout Ontario, Canada.
Moreover, with same store unit sales up 55 percent year-over-year at Kroger, Blossom Water hopes to be in a few hundred more of Kroger stores by year-end. Altogether, when combined with expansion elsewhere in its authorization base, the company is on track to add 1,500 stores to its retail footprint this year.
"Our retail partners tell us they want Blossom Water on their shelves because customers are increasingly looking for great-tasting drinks that are also healthful, in lieu of higher sugar and often less natural sodas or juices," said Steve Rovner, Blossom Water's chief customer officer, in a statement. "And our brand's signature distinction — the perfect marriage of fruit and flower essence — offers an authentically unique alternative in this marketplace crowded with me-too beverages."
The following are the new authorizations:
Albertsons Companies: The nation's second largest traditional grocery chain.
Safeway/Albertsons Portland Division: 110-plus Safeway stores and 30-plus Albertsons stores in Oregon and southwestern Washington.
Shaws/Star Market: All chain stores, 100-plus Shaws and 20-plus Star Markets throughout five New England states.
Acme: 70-plus stores, selected among the chain's most choice locations in Philadelphia and environs.
ShopRite: 125-plus stores in New Jersey and New York.
Price Chopper: 130-plus stores in Upstate New York, Pennsylvania and much of New England.
Hasty Market: 150-plus stores in Ontario, Canada.
"We greatly value the opportunity to join up with each of these retailers," said Steve Fortuna, Blossom Water's president and cofounder, in a statement. "When added to strong and growing ties with Kroger and others, we easily should meet our 2017 stretch goal of 1,500 new doors, positioning us for accelerated growth in 2018."
