Welcome back to another episode of Getting to Grow! On episode #19 I was joined by Duncan O'Brien, founder of Dalstons. 

Dalston's was born in 2012 and it started in the most vibrant and eclectic of East London homes. The iconic Passing Clouds nightclub in Dalston – a hub of spoken word, reggae, gypsy swing and everything in between – was the birthplace of, well, Dalston’s.

It was there that Duncan started mashing and blending the first bottles of Dalston’s Cola by hand in a tiny kitchen to sell at the venue as its alternative to mainstream soft drinks. But his journey to the drinks industry goes back even further – in the bar car of an Orient Express train riding around the west coast of Scotland.

Just three months after joining the Orient Express as a bartender, Duncan was called into the on-board kitchen as emergency cover and soon found himself wearing chef whites permanently. Making the shift from food preparation to drink-making was an interesting progression for Duncan, but fast forward to 2012 and  Duncan was making and bottling his colas out of tiny kitchens in East London. The inspiration behind Dalston Cola? “The pure and simple underdog mentality of going up against Coca Cola; an enormous and established company.”

Dalstons outgrew their first brew-yard, waved goodbye, and moved to a larger space in 2016. In 2016 Duncan called in a little help from co-founder, Dan Broughton and industry turned pro investor Giles Brook in order to take on the big drinks biz head on. The business started accelerating and thanks to a brand refresh and some awesome new flavours – their sodas went pop!

Currently you can find Dalstons in the likes of Waitrose, Sainsbury's, Whole Foods and many more including independents.

To find out more, visit dalstons.com and make sure to follow them on Instagram @drinkdalstons

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See you guys next time!

Zoe