NEW YORK — Coffee is a universal way to start the day for many consumers. Now it may be the universal way to not only wake up but wake up with added health benefits.

Chandra Holt left her post as the chief executive officer of Bed Bath and Beyond to develop Incredibrew — a line of functional coffee available in four varieties.

“Our vision is that everyone’s day can start with wellness in their coffee cup,” Holt said. “As people continue to try to look for places to add wellness to their everyday regimen, I think coffee is going to be a place that becomes more normal for people to do that. Right now, it’s still a relatively new concept. I think it will continue to grow.”

Incredibrew officially launched in January. First products in the launch included: Coffee + Vitamins, a medium roast Colombian coffee infused with 10 essential vitamins and minerals; The Coffee + Protein variety, a French roast coffee infused with 7 grams of protein; Coffee + Collagen, a French roast infused with seven grams of bovine collagen; and Coffee + Melatonin, a decaffeinated French roast Arabica coffee with 3 mgs of melatonin, 385 mgs of magnesium and 155 mgs of masinol.

Holt said she is currently working on two additional varieties.

“There’s collagen products on the market but I wanted to make sure that the coffees that I launched not only tasted good but had really high efficacy,” she said. “My coffee has 10 grams of protein. My initial launch was going to be 6 (grams of protein), but I figured out through trial and error how to get the 10 grams in there. I have a revised coffee and protein SKU launching in May-  it will have 10 grams of protein in it and will replace the 6 grams version. I know a lot of people look to get more protein in their diet. My last SKU (stock-keeping unit) it’s kind of like a sleepy time coffee.”

Consumers enjoy their cup of Joe differently. Knowing this, Holt developed Incredibrew’s products to “make it seem like a regular cup of coffee but with a benefit.”

“The protein one is almost creamy because it has some whey protein in there; the whey protein cuts the bitterness a little bit,” she said. “I’m calling the protein one a brew and stir because with any protein drink, you have to shake it. It’s like a latte. You can brew it and drink it. But for the best results, you’re going to want to let it cool and when you’re about to drink it, just give it a quick stir. It just gives you an optimal smoothness if you do that.

“The vitamin coffee is medium roast. If you like a breakfast blend, donut shop type coffees, this is the coffee for you. The collagen is a French roast, so it’s more intense from a flavor standpoint. The decaf is somewhere in the middle, it’s very approachable, but a little more intensity than the medium roast vitamin.”

Holt named Yoke Wong, president and principal consultant at F&B Consulting, a food and beverage company that specializes in product innovations, for Incredibrew’s research and development phase. Wong also has worked for Starbucks in several product development positions.

“She came up with a list of 12 different options and that’s actually where we got the idea (for) a decaf with melatonin,” Holt said. “Initially my fourth SKU was going to be fiber. When I told people about the sleepy time coffee, everyone said they needed that. The fiber one is still in development.”

The line initially launched in the form of coffee pods, which Holt said is where she saw the most consumer demand. Future formats may include grounds, instant sticks and ready-to-drink.

“I wanted to start where it would be the easiest to get into people’s routine,” she said. “Refrigerator ready-to-drink (coffee) is a really interesting space; it’s really on fire right now. That’s definitely something that I’m already looking into. I think instant coffee, ironically enough, is actually trending right now. So, this product is perfect for instant sticks because you get it and just can be on the go.”

The products are available in a box of 12 coffee pods for $17.99. Pricing the coffees as a startup in the volatile green coffee market, Holt faced cost pressures.

To offset the pressures, Holt said she handles pricing similar to how larger companies handle market dynamics. A few examples include looking at finding ways to reduce costs to offset commodity increases and also looking at sourcing alternatives, she said.

“I wanted to price it so that it was on the higher end of conventional coffee, which usually retails for less than $1 per cup, but definitely on the low end of wellness coffee so it was attainable for most people who drink K-Cups,” Holt said. “Many wellness brands sell pods for over $1.50 per cup. I set $1.50 per cup as my max price and am working to lower it for the future.

“However, most mature brands will also pass through cost increases to retailers and on to the end consumer. As a startup, I am keenly focused on offsetting the price increases so I can keep my target retail intact.”

Holt’s past consumer packaged goods retail experience, which included buyer and executive positions at Target, Sam’s Club, Walmart and others, also helped her see where “big demand pockets” were for launching Incredibrew as a “digital first brand.”

 “Walmart and Amazon that’s where a lot of the premium first coffees live today,” she said. “I also looked at Google demand. So, looking at search in Google what are those big search terms people are looking for specifically at the beginning of the year when they’re trying to set a new wellness standard for themselves?

“If you can just infuse a little bit of wellness in your routine in a way that’s simple, I think that’s going to stick. You know, a lot more than trying to go to the gym for an extra hour a day.”

“Strong brand awareness and distribution” are key for Incredibrew before pursuing other product avenues, Holt said.

“Once I have that, then I will go ahead and expand into whether that’s more formats, more flavors, you know neighboring kind of things like teas and things like that,” she said. “I want to make sure the ones (products) I do are very meaningful and we don’t get too niche.”

Holt said combining her passion for wellness into her company was a way she could simplify health routines for consumers.

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