Mr. Ricci: Jones Soda was technically started in late 1980s by our founder in Canada. We say that the brand as Jones started, and really was started, to be available in the U.S. in 1996. The company headquarters moved from Vancouver, B.C., to Seattle in around 2000, and we've been here ever since. The founder wanted to offer something unique and fun to the consumers because he felt like the soda space and the category had just gotten to be the same old thing, and needed something new and different. So we were always known as the company that has some unique offerings, will come out with a flavor that you didn't expect - like our new one - and always kind of have a little bit of twist on the brand. The other thing is that we have always considered ourselves an open-source brand, and so our connection and interaction with our consumers have been the most important aspect of this brand from day one. Since we started putting photos on the labels, we have received over 1.1 million photos either via the mail and via e-mail or our online submission on our Web site. Just a little over 10,000 of those photos have actually made it on bottles.
TWST: Tell us about your strategy to move away from your lower-margin canned soda business to your higher-margin core products. What progress have you made and what has been the impact on the bottom line so far?
Mr. Ricci: The can business is very price driven. I think that what happened with the company was that we got very focused on driving the can business and driving the incremental side of that purchase to the consumer. While we have shifted our direction back to our glass business, it's really been about how we maintain a core can business within retailers and markets where it's working. And we're still building the glass business because the glass is the icon of the brand. We have lots of opportunities to build that foundation as well. So far moving our mix has worked very well, as we've seen increasing profitability this year not only in gross profit percentage but also in dollars.
Tickers included in this excerpt: JSDA
For more information call (212) 952 7433. The Wall Street Transcript does not endorse any of the comments made by interviewees, and does not make stock recommendations.