“We all know people are drinking more beverages these days and we’re seeing a lot of that growth in the ready-to-drink tea and lemonade categories,” says Tricia Wallwork, Chair and CEO at Milo’s Tea Co., Bessemer, Ala. “Tea is thriving as more consumers look for convenient, delicious, caffeinated options, and we’re planning for steady momentum well into the future. Lemonade, while traditionally a smaller category, is drawing lots of new fans to our brand.

“From where I sit, this growth is a reflection of what we’ve always known at Milo’s ― our fans value great taste, quality ingredients, and moments of delicious joy,” she continues.

As a third-generation, family-owned company, Milo’s history dates back nearly 80 years ago, showcasing a brand and company that has continued to evolve and grow over that time thanks to its understanding of what its consumers want.

“Milo’s is a great American growth story and, 79 years in, we’re just getting started,” Wallwork says. “When my granddad, Milo, came back from WWII in 1946, he started a hamburger restaurant in Birmingham, Ala. Eventually, my parents realized people were coming just to get the Sweet Tea, so they started bottling it in a jug and selling in a local grocery store.”

Having assumed the CEO position in 2012, Wallwork shares that she is proud to be part of this legacy. At the time she took on the top leadership position, Milo’s had 40 employees and was a small, local business. That has all changed.

“Today, we have over 1,000 associates and are available in all 50 states,” Wallwork says. “In 2025, we plan to craft and serve over 207 million gallons of teas and lemonades to fans across the country ― that’s 2.1 billion servings of delicious beverages.

“While we have grown, the quality of our delicious beverages remains unchanged,” she continues. “Our teas and lemonade are made with simple, real ingredients, the same way my grandparents did 80 years ago.”

Wallwork notes that this growth trajectory is not typical of a third-generation family-owned business, but has helped the company reach a national consumer base.

“In the past 10 years, we’ve doubled in size 3.5 times and are now the No. 1 refrigerated tea brand in the country and the fastest-growing top lemonade brand,” she says. “We’ve grown from one facility in Alabama to four across the Southeast, and we’re now in over 55,000 retail locations nationwide.”

This strong growth has resulted in the company investing more into its manufacturing as earlier this year it opened a fourth facility in Spartanburg, S.C.

“This is our largest and most advanced plant yet ― a $200 million facility with cutting edge technology,” Wallwork says. “It’s strategically positioned to expand distribution, ensuring best-in-class on-time and in-full service for our retail partners.

“The new facility is designed to double our production capacity and support continued growth across the country,” she continues. “At scale, the new facility will also provide more than 200 good-paying U.S manufacturing jobs, which is something I’m really proud of.”

Wallwork explains that the Spartanburg facility is designed for today and tomorrow’s manufacturing needs.

“Our team has installed and commissioned three lines so far, with the ability to add three more lines (for a total of six) in the current footprint,” she says. “That said, we are already eyeing a fifth plant because we are just getting started growing at Milo’s.”

The new Spartanburg facility was built with technology in mind that honors its “brewed-like-you-do” promise, while scaling responsibly, Wallwork notes.

“The plant features high-speed brewing and blending systems that give us industry-leading production capacity within an efficient footprint,” she says. “We added an advanced and efficient water-filtration system that sustainably produces high-quality product, and we’re filling every bottle on best-in-class multi-serve lines designed for cold beverages.”

All these investments will help Milo’s continue its goal to scale with purpose and intention.

“We want to deepen our footprint nationally, bringing Milo’s and spreading delicious joy to more fans across the country,” Wallwork says. “We’re also going to continue investing in creating great jobs, expanding our community impact and investing in sustainability. And, we’re going to continue to innovate and bring new flavors to our fans ― without sacrificing the quality and great taste that we’re known for.”

Authentic experience

Milo’s growth comes at a time that Wallwork highlights that consumers are gravitating more and more to natural products.

“Today’s consumers are drawn to natural beverages made with simple, clean ingredients, things they have in their own pantries,” she says. “They’re moving away from artificial additives and leaning into functional, refreshing beverages that align with their lifestyles and taste homemade. Convenience is also key. We’re all busier than ever, and RTD tea and lemonade offer a familiar, authentic experience they can grab from the fridge or cooler and feel good about.”

Wallwork sees these trends among the reasons that these categories will continue to grow.

“I expect we’ll continue to see steady growth across both categories ― particularly for brands like Milo’s that stay focused on quality and are grounded in authenticity and consumer trust,” Wallwork says. “As more people prioritize transparency and quality, companies that deliver those values in an authentic way will stand out.”

This market performance also has contributed to Milo’s growing market share in both the tea and lemonade markets.

“Our tea category share in dollars is 45.9% and our lemonade share is 8% and growing fast ― quickly becoming the fastest-growing top brand in the category,” says Dan Weingart, chief commercial officer of Milo’s Tea Co.

Of its tea portfolio, Weingart says that the company’s most popular teas are classic varieties ― Milo’s Famous Sweet Tea, Zero Calorie Sweet Tea and Extra Sweet Tea ― in its iconic multi-serve gallon jug. For lemonades, its Lemonade in gallon and 20-ounce are its most successful.

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Although these classics have helped fuel the growth at Milo’s, the company is listening to what its consumers want in tea and lemonade beverages.

“We’re definitely hearing our fans ask for more fruit-forward and citrus flavors across both categories, with bright, nostalgic profiles making a strong comeback,” Wallwork says. “Flavors like strawberry, peach, lemon and raspberry resonate with consumers because they offer a new ― but familiar ― twist on existing favorites. We’re also seeing growth in blends, like our tea and lemonade combination, as fans look to broaden their horizons.”

This proactive approach to listening to its consumers played a role in its most recent releases of Strawberry Lemonade, Raspberry Lemonade and Lemon Sweet Tea.

“We’re always listening to our fans, and one thing we kept hearing was a desire for new vibrant fruit flavors ― especially in lemonade,” Weingart says. “We leaned into that feedback and created three new offerings across our existing lineup. Strawberry and raspberry are timeless crowd-pleasers in lemonade, while a squeeze of lemon in sweet tea offers a vibrant twist on our fan-favorite. Just like everything we make, the new innovations are made fresh daily and are 100% natural, with no preservatives or additives.”

In fact, the new lemonades have already shown strong performance.

“Our delicious new Strawberry Lemonade and Raspberry Lemonade are available in 20-ounce bottles, half gallons, and gallons, and the early performance is looking really strong,” Weingart notes.

Weingart adds that the company has received positive feedback following the release.

“The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” he says. “Early sales results have been better than expected. We’re seeing strong performance at retail, enthusiastic reviews online, and a lot of excitement on social. People are loving the new flavors.”

That love for the new flavors, likely stems from the fact that the new additions are natural extensions of its classic varieties.

“Our core products are beloved for their freshness and simplicity, and these new flavors offer the same clean-label and homemade-taste Milo’s is known for,” Weingart says. “The new innovations just give our fans more to love. Whether someone’s looking for something sweet, something tart, or something right in the middle ― we’ve got them covered.”

Initially, the distribution footprint for the new varieties has been concentrated in the Southeast with the Mid-Atlantic also for Lemon Sweet Tea, but Milo’s does have plans to expand this footprint.

“[W]e’re working to expand distribution, bringing new innovations to Milo’s fans across the country,” Weingart says. “Our goal is to expand these products nationwide as we scale production.”

Although the company just released these three varieties, Weingart notes that the company will continue to monitor the market and what its consumers want.

“While I can’t share all the details just yet, I will say we’re always looking at what’s next –especially where we can meet consumer needs without compromising on ingredients or values,” he says. “We have some exciting products in the pipeline, and I look forward to sharing more later this year.”

Milo’s proactive and authentic dedication to its products and consumers likely will help the company continue its growth and success.

“As a 100% independent, family and women-owned business, Milo’s works hard to do what we believe is right ― for our people, our communities and our fans,” Wallwork says. “We lead with our values and that means putting our TEAm first, giving back to the places where we live and work, and delivering delicious teas and lemonades made with real, high-quality ingredients. Most brands out there can’t do that authentically and we think it’s a differentiator for us.”