HYDRO FLASK STORY
SAVING THE WORLD FROM LUKEWARM
Until recently, when you went for a hike, bike ride or came back from a surf, what waited for you was a plastic bottle, canteen, or some form of cup with a lid and straw combination that held your precious water—the one that they typically sell at sporting events and amusement parks. You would then settle on lukewarm or, even worse, warm water to quench your thirst. There was no immediate solution outside of lugging around a heavy ice chest to provide the cool, crisp refreshment of a cold beverage for day long adventures. Enter Hydro Flask, the rst to introduce an all-insulated stainless steel bottle collection to the market to forever change the way we carry our beverage.
The Hydro Flask story began ten years ago on the sunny beaches of Hawaii. Co-founders, Travis Rosbach and Cindy Morse, weren’t satis ed with the plastic water bottles that simply didn’t do a good job of keeping their water cold when they came back to the sand from a surf session. It was this revelation that sparked the impulse to create the perfect water bottle: a bottle that would keep their beverages cold for hours, be durable and manufactured from safe, toxin-free and BPA-free materials. A year later in 2009, after moving back to Bend, Oregon, the pair launched Hydro Flask.
Prior to Hydro Flask, most beverage containers were made with various materials including plastic, stainless steel, and glass. Each presented a problem as original single-walled stainless steel bottles wouldn’t keep beverages cool for long, plastics could be considered toxic if containing BPA, and glass bottles are heavy and fragile.
As adventure sports athletes, the founders were familiar with the other reusable water bottles on the market, but none met their needs. They had four requirements for their new water bottle design. It had to be safe and contain no BPA, it had to keep beverages cold or hot for a long period of time, it couldn’t “sweat” and it had to be extremely durable. They set out to manufacture a solution and came up with a unique vacuum-insulated double-wall design that would provide insulation for the cold or hot liquids, prevent condensation and would keep the bottle from transferring heat or cold from the liquid to your hand while holding it. The rst Hydro Flask bottles were offered as 18- and 24-ounce narrow mouth bottles, both utilizing a double-walled design that was made with a durable, BPA-free, uncoated, 18/8 stainless steel. The details were not overlooked as the mouth of the bottle was speci cally chosen to be large enough to t full-size ice cubes, yet small enough to reduce spilling while you drink. Even the nger hole at the top of the cap was designed ergonomically
correct to improve how you carry it.
The signature matte powdercoated finish of the Hydro Flask bottle has become synonymous for the brand, providing not only additional durability, but also the bright, vivid, and fun colors that have helped the brand stand out from the pack. Powdercoating is a process that fuses the non-toxic, food-grade finish to the exterior of the bot-
tle. This dedication to design and innovation helped catapult Hydro Flask to the top of the category, but it wasn’t without a bit of effort.
Like many successful entrepreneurs it took not only a good idea, but also commitment, to introduce the new product to the market. A grassroots approach was taken at rst, with the founders packing their car with bottles in the trunk to display at open air markets and swap meets, such as the Portland Saturday Market. Early adopters really liked the bottles and soon buzz began to grow throughout the Paci c Northwest with consumers lining up to own a Hydro Flask bottle. Eventually, this newfound popularity lead to Hydro ask opening up retail accounts with outdoor retail chains, sporting good stores, and even Whole Foods.
Helping to protect the environment has been at the core of the company. A decade ago, the founders saw the impact that plastic water bottles were making on the environment and ensured that each Hydro Flask bottle was 100-percent recyclable. On the day the company launched, the founders also created a non-pro t organization called FivePercentBack.org, in which a portion of proceeds from the sale of each Hydro Flask water bottle would go directly to a charitable organization selected by the customer. Today, the company and 5% Back have evolved into “Parks for
All,” Hydro Flask’s charitable grant program supporting the development, maintenance and accessibility of public green spaces globally.
PR and Communications Manager Lucas Alberg told us, “We are fortunate to call Bend, Oregon, home, where there is desert to the east of town and mountains to the west. Our geography says a lot about who we are.” It really comes to no surprise that the company is influenced by nature and the outdoors. The headquarters is still located in Bend, Oregon, where the location helps to inspire the direction of the products and the culture of the company. Many employees can be found meeting before work to hike up the Cone, a local backcountry ski spot, to enjoy their coffee with a view. Alberg adds, “We don’t hold back when at work or at play, and we don’t accept lukewarm in our attitude toward life...or in the temperature of whatever we happen to be drinking.”
As the company grew, new ideas and solutions for high-performance hydration and insulation were introduced into the market. By 2012, the founders had moved on from the company after taking on investments, and Hydro Flask had showcased the first vacuum-insulated beer growler going after the ever popular craft beer market. Soon afterwards the product line-up grew to include a line-up of children’s water bottles, coffee mugs, wine bottles, and even food flasks.
Hydro Flask continues to look for new opportunities to address consumer needs. In 2017, it parlayed its insulation expertise into a new category with the release of the Unbound Series soft-sided coolers to create
another product category that people could use to keep both their beverages and food chilled and take just about anywhere at any time, including road trips, camping, and on daily adventures.
Today, over 100 products are offered for multiple categories including: hydration, coffee, beer and wine, and food. The company has won numerous accolades for its designs and product innovation. Hydro Flask continues its quest to help quench the thirst for its consumers around the globe and is now the number one all-American water bottle brand in the sporting goods and outdoor world.