Effects of Positive Marketing

Brian Machovina is President of Nui, a children's water company that markets in health food stores across the United States. His company's charity model has proven to be a profitable venture with the use of positive marketing and the practice of broadening target demographics. Machovina talks in depth about his forward-thinking corporate and marketing strategies.

Brian Machovina: A lot of the people, who worked with me, do it for nothing. A lot of these people who come on board and been spokespeople for us that they do because they really believe in what our company is all about. Zorianna Kit: Hi, and welcome to Dog and Pony. I’m Zorianna Kit. When you have a product with positive values, a fourth charity company can make for a good reputation and big revenue. Here today is Brain Machovina, president of Nui, a children’s beverage company with a fourth charity model. Brian, welcome. Brian Machovina: Thank you. Zorianna Kit: So, who drinks your water? Brian Machovina: Well, a lot of people drink our water everything from kids to adults. But we market the product mainly to six to twelve year olds, its healthy alternative to a lot of the other beverages that have been market to kids. Zorianna Kit: So, it’s not just for children, and it’s not just for adults. Brian Machovina: Exactly. It’s for everybody we feel but we say it’s safe for adults but with kids supervision. Zorianna Kit: Do you drink it? Brian Machovina: Yes, everyday. I have a Nui for lunch everyday. Zorianna Kit: Really? Brian Machovina: Yeah! Zorianna Kit: Have you been marketing your company? Brian Machovina: We’ve been marketing our company with variety of ways. We’ve done our great out reach into dietitians, and it spreads through their network, and we get a lot of random calls from dietitians around the company. We actually had a call from one based in Chicago who loved the Nui product, and she’s actually dietitian for the Chicago black hawks and we ended up sending a whole bunch of Nui in coolers to the team. She wanted the team to start drinking Nui. Zorianna Kit: Wow! Brian Machovina: Yes, and we’ve also had some other great support form Herschel Walker, the high spin trophy former player with the Dallas Cowboys. He’s been a big supporter of Nui, and he’s help us out on a few programs. We did a bunch of nutrition messages teaching kids about eating fiber, eating a rainbow of foods, staying hydrated, and Herschel Walker participated at that was our live action person in the shoot along with our Nui characters which were animated around them so It’s very exiting. Zorianna Kit: Wow! Where do you get the funding for this? I mean I know it’s not for profit, it’s for charity but I mean to create animated characters in it. To do on that, I mean, that can cost a lot of money. Brian Machovina: Absolutely. Well, our third partner in the business is our investor in the business. So, he’s are angel that came on board to really help us move this forward. But a lot of the people, who worked with Nui, do it for nothing. A lot of these people who’ve come on board and been spokespeople for us and they do it because they really believe in what the company is all about, about improving the health of the kids and inspiring kids to improve the world around them. Zorianna Kit: What’s the ultimate goal with Nui? Brian Machovina: The ultimate goal of Nui is we see it as a brand parents looked to sort of a paradise within all the products that are out there for kids. Where you know you’re going go get really good, healthy products and really good, healthy messaging that’s going to inspire them to take care of themselves, take care the world around them, take care of the environment that supports them. Zorianna Kit: So, what’s the fourth charity model of Nui? Brian Machovina: The fourth charity model well, in addition to the healthy products in messaging we put out there, we donate fifty percent of our profits to kids charities. And we supported a number of charities in the past, and everything from the focusing physical fitness for kids, how to improve the immediate health of your home, getting rid of pesticides and other dangers, chemicals things like that. So, it’s really the core of our business is giving back from what we earned as a company. Zorianna Kit: Has your business ever got on breaks because of your charity model? Brian Machovina: Absolutely! We find you know—if you do good, good things come back to you, you know karma, we believe in that. So for example, for a long time we wanted to get the website Nui.com, and it was owned by a multibillion dollar energy company. And about over four to six months process, we approached them. We went through all their lawyers all the way to the top of the company. It was a website they really weren’t using anymore, and in the end, they ended up giving us the website. Zorianna Kit: Do you consider yourself an entrepreneur? Brian Machovina: Yes, definitely, we were entrepreneurs at heart, and I am absolutely. Zorianna Kit: How’s that? I mean where does your entrepreneurial spirit come from? Brian Machovina: My entrepreneurial spirit comes from—I love the adventure of that being entrepreneurial. I liked not necessarily knowing where we’ll going to be in a year or couple of years from now, but having that vision and a positive attitude knowing we’re going somewhere good. Zorianna Kit: Where were you before Nui? Brian Machovina: Before Nui, I build in the Pastena and in another life I was a marine biologist, and an ecologist and it bring a lot of that knowledge to this business as well. I really see life is very holistic and you have to support others around you and when you do that life is going to be better for yourself. Zorianna Kit: That’s such a drastic switch from marine biology and to children’s drinks. Brian Machovina: Absolutely, But wrap in the whole, you know, within the realm of what Nui is as a company is a lot of a messaging, we’re trying to get across the kids beyond, just food products and beverage products, but the media products we’re expanding into is that messaging of taking care of yourself, taking care of others and the world around you and that really response from, you know my background as an ecologist. Zorianna Kit: Brian Machovina, president of Nui. Thank you so much for joining us today. Brian Machovina: Thanks for having me here. Zorianna Kit: If you have questions, comments or ideas for guest, please email info at dogandpony.com. I’m Zorianna Kit, thanks for watching.