Quitting Hal’s Seltzer
Quitting Hal’s Seltzer
I haven’t had Hal’s seltzer in two years.
If you know me, this might be hard to believe considering my past with the brand.
In my typical BOUNTY mindset, I am perpetually browsing the shelves for exclusive snacks in each new place I visit. Already a helpless soda-sucker, I thought I was familiar with all of the established regional labels. Imagine how stoked I was when I first moved in the city in 2017 and found a “New York” branded seltzer. Going down to the bodega below my apartment and chatting with the owner over a Hal’s made me feel a sense of authentic belonging in my new city. I was hooked. Flashes of the bottle that I shared on IG were met with intrigue and the branding quickly became synonymous with BOUNTY. Friends from home and abroad saw Hal’s as a legendary item of sorts, and I took great pleasure in bringing bottles home of the exotic elixir for my people to sample.
It wasn’t long before I was in contact with Hal’s who found my unsolicited endorsement of the then-nascent brand equal parts perplexing and endearing. When I returned to Connecticut to finish school, I often made orders directly though the distributor for cases to my home.
Pack came in
My regular, friendly cadence with Hal’s reached a pinnacle at the June 2019 Fancy Foods trade show (annual BOUNTY reconnaissance mission) when I approached the Hal’s booth unannounced.
“I’m a big fan of Hal’s” I zealously remarked to the panel of Hal’s reps.
“We know who you are, Nick” replied the head of marketing.
Cementing my unofficial partnership
My honeymoon with Hal’s coincided with a formative time in my life. I was learning more about my values and who I wanted to be. I began to place a tremendous amount of importance on being an advocate for the planet and with that, became more conscious of the amount of plastic waste I produce.
Suddenly, the dozens of Hal’s bottles that I displayed so proudly, evoked a feeling of shame. I found myself a hypocrite, a living contradiction.
So I stopped drinking Hals.
The world certainly did not stop drinking Hal’s however. In fact, the whole country seemed to be going through some sort of seltzer phenomenon. Sales of the bubbly good stuff skyrocketed during the period 2017-2019 and several popular seltzer brands saw single-year sales increases greater than 20% in 2019 alone. Hal’s would go on to strike deals with the likes of Whole Foods and 7 Eleven, and expand its distribution throughout New England and beyond. Next came Hal’s kettle potato chips and popcorn. They seemed to be doing just fine without me.
A good friend recently texted me and said that Hal’s now is selling seltzer in a can.
I’m cool on that. I look back on my time with Hal’s like an ex. We had some good times, but I’m glad I went my own way.