Sanzo is an American brand of

sparkling water Carbonated water is water containing dissolved carbon dioxide gas, either artificially injected under pressure, or occurring due to natural geological processes. Carbonation causes small bubbles to form, giving the water an effervescent qualit ...

flavored with Asian fruits. These flavors include

lychee Lychee ( , ; ''Litchi chinensis''; ) is a monotypic taxon and the sole member in the genus ''Litchi'' in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae. There are three distinct subspecies of lychee. The most common is the Indochinese lychee found in So ...

yuzu Yuzu (''Citrus'' × ''junos'', from Japanese language, Japanese or ; ) is a citrus fruit and plant in the family Rutaceae of China, Chinese origin. Yuzu has been cultivated mainly in East Asia, though it has also recently been grown in New Z ...

pomelo The pomelo ( ; or pummelo, ''Citrus maxima''), also known as a shaddock, is the largest citrus fruit. It is an ancestor of several cultivated citrus species, including the bitter orange and the grapefruit. It is a natural, non-hybrid citrus fr ...

calamansi Calamansi (''Citrus'' × ''microcarpa''), also known as calamondin, Philippine lime, or Philippine lemon, is a citrus hybrid cultivated predominantly in the Philippines. It is native to the Philippines, parts of Indonesia (Borneo, Sumatra, and ...

mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...

, and formerly Asian pear.

History

Sanzo was founded in 2019 by Sandro Roco, a

Filipino American Filipino Americans () are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos in North America were first documented in the 16th century and other small settlements beginning in the 18th century. Mass migration did not begin until after the end of the Sp ...

who grew up in the New York City metro area. Roco had the idea to start the company in mid-2018, citing a lack of Asian-inspired beverages in American grocery markets. Roco stated, " Crazy Rich Asians was the number one film at the box office, Korean pop was hitting a fever pitch, and the influence of Asian food and culture was really starting to make its mark on American culture. But when I walked the beverage aisles at both markets like Whole Foods and H-Mart, I didn’t feel there was anything properly capturing this shift in culture." Sanzo's initial flavors were calamansi, lychee, and mango. In August 2020, Sanzo raised US$1.3 million in seed funding. In February 2022, Sanzo announced a new yuzu flavor and shared that they had raised $10 million in

Series A funding A series A is the name typically given to a company's first significant round of venture capital financing. It can be followed by the word round, investment or financing. The name refers to the class of preferred stock sold to investors in excha ...

led by CircleUp Growth Partners. In March 2022, they became available in Whole Foods nationwide, which Roco cited as when "things started getting pretty interesting for us." Later that year, Sanzo partnered with professional basketball player Jeremy Lin to release a limited Asian pear flavor for the 10th anniversary of " Linsanity", a cultural phenomenon in response to Lin's performance during the

2011–12 NBA season The 2011–12 NBA season was the 66th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Due to the 2011 NBA lockout, lockout, the regular season was reduced to 66 games for each team, and began on December 25, 2011, coinciding with NBA Christm ...

. In February 2023, Sanzo announced a new pomelo flavor. As of March 2023, the company had 18 employees and their drinks were available at

Whole Foods Market Whole Foods Market, Inc. (colloquially referred to as simply Whole Foods) is an American multinational supermarket chain store, chain headquartered in Austin, Texas, which sells products free from Hydrogenated fat, hydrogenated fats and artificia ...

Target Target may refer to: Warfare and shooting * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artille ...

, and

Panda Express Panda Express is an American fast food restaurant chain that specializes in American Chinese cuisine. With over 2,400 locations, it is the largest Asian-segment restaurant chain in the United States, and is mainly located in North America and Asi ...

, among other retailers.

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://drinksanzo.com/ American soft drinks Carbonated water