Business Spotlight: Sēkwl Beverage House
Breaking into the market as a beverage manufacturer can be daunting. The industry is constantly evolving with this or that new fad. It takes a truly unique idea to stand out in a thirsty world.
Sēkwl Beverage House Chief Beverage Officer Matthew Eaton didn’t have to forage very far for his unique idea. Born out of a personal health scare, his idea mixed flavor with function to create a tasty, healthy way to quench the thirst of consumers — and leave them wanting more.
The challenge
Matthew never set out to sell beverages made from functional mushrooms. But after a frightening health diagnosis and some research led him to the healing powers of turkey tail mushrooms, he couldn’t shake the idea that others might also benefit from the healthful and nutritious qualities of one of nature’s most resilient species. He mustered a team — cofounders Ryan Kelley, Shannon Eurich and John Walls — and founded Sēkwl Beverage House.
Thinking about the “what’s in it for me” for customers was easy. “We saw an opportunity to differentiate with beverages,” Matthew explained. “Each can has 1,000 milligrams of functional mushrooms inside, which is the minimum recommended daily value for these supplements. They can help with everything from digestion to cognitive function, and customers tell us they can really feel the benefits.”
But with inflation and the ever-rising costs of doing business, he knew it was important to build a solid foundation, and that starts with location. “We were looking in northwest Denver and the Wheat Ridge/Arvada area,” Matthew said. “We wanted something that would be centrally located along the Front Range and the highways for distribution. There are obviously a lot of options in there, and at first, it felt hard to narrow down the field.”
The solution
“While searching for a space, I got to meet Peter Henriksen, who owns Henriksen Amplifiers and is now a neighbor and president of our HOA,” Matthew explained. “He talked about his experience working with AEDA and what it was like for him as a small business operating in Arvada and other areas of metro Denver.”
Peter is a member of AEDA’s Retention Committee. “He said there’s something different and special about this community, and that is exactly what we experienced in working with the city both before and since we landed in Arvada. We’ve felt very welcomed,” Matthew said.
They ended up at the business park just north of I-76 at Sheridan Boulevard and Ralston Road. “The spot is perfect for us, not only because it’s a little manufacturing hub right in the heart of the metro, but it’s also not in the major industrial zones.”
Sēkwl’s HQ is also close to other beverage makers. “The connections we’ve made have been incredible. We attended AEDA’s roundtable on the beverage industry around the corner at our neighbors, Talnua Distillery. It’s really neat to have landed here, in the middle of this tight-knit community of beverage manufacturers. We would have no real connections if it weren’t for AEDA, and that’s been incredibly helpful when launching a new business in a community that we want to be a part of.”
Matthew says the AEDA team also helped take the uncertainty out of starting a new business. “We’ve learned so many lessons since we opened in Arvada, and AEDA has always been there to answer our questions, point us toward resources and find new ways for us to get out and really be seen by the community.”
One of those opportunities came this summer, as the Denver Gay Games 2030 Bid Committee visited Arvada. “As an LGBTQ+-owned company, we’re very active in the queer community,” Matthew said. “The AEDA team made it possible for us to engage with the selection committee, share our beverages and tell our story when they were in town. We would never have even known that the Arvada event was even happening if it weren’t for them. It was really cool to be part of it, and we hope Sēkwl will be a sponsor if Denver is selected as the host city!”
Learn more about Sēkwl Beverage House and try out some of their great flavors at drinksekwl.com.
