Yanni Hufnagel

Yanni Hufnagel (born August 26, 1982) is an American entrepreneur, former college basketball coach, and the founder and CEO of Atlanta-based The Lemon Perfect Company, maker of the enhanced water brand Lemon Perfect.

Before starting Lemon Perfect, he served as an assistant coach of the Nevada Wolf Pack men's basketball team under Eric Musselman.

He previously served as an assistant coach for the California Golden Bears, Vanderbilt Commodores, and Harvard Crimson. Hufnagel was regarded as one of the top recruiters in college basketball.

Quotes

 * Life is never a straight line.


 * Every day I got up and I just tried to put one foot in front of the other and get a little bit better and get closer to being able to really wake up in the morning and dream big in a realistic way.


 * I have to tell you, Ray, I’ve been obsessive about protecting our IP, really from second one. So I think the registration was not that far behind, yes. And when I speak with other founders — not only in food and beverage — the first thing I always ask is, “Have you filed to trademark your IP, your name?” Because without that, generally speaking, you’re back to zero. I mean, a name change after you launch is very challenging, if not impossible. And so one of the first things I ask after, “Are you well capitalized?” and “Let me try the product. How does it taste?” would be, “Do you own your IP?”


 * I jumped up, and that night I googled how to start a beverage company. And what I’ll say is the skill set between coaching college basketball and recruiting at that level and building a beverage company — they’re very harmonious. And I had a fascination with consumer brands — even when I was coaching — especially those in the natural channel. And so there’s been real utility in my coaching skill set now as we’re building this business.


 * There’s nothing in the category with our flavor profile, the freshness of our flavor profile, our nutritional deck, and zero sugar. We’re bottled in 100% recycled plastic, and we’re organic. I think we’ve got magic inside the bottle. When people drink the brand, they come back in a big way, and the data suggests that.


 * We’re going to change the way people drink water. To do that, you have to be able to play on price.


 * It doesn’t matter how much money you make, what you look like, where you shop, where you live. Flavor knows no boundaries.


 * The four Ps that I consider paramount to winning in the beverage business are product, price, packaging, and people. We got that right early on.


 * My heart wants this brand to be ubiquitous. Sometimes you get one opportunity to build something that can be ubiquitous in the way that Lemon Perfect can be.


 * As we dive meaningfully into the NIL ecosystem, we're honored to have C.J. join our Lemon Perfect team as a spokesperson for great-tasting healthy hydration. C.J. is a one-of-a-kind football prospect whose reach will continue to accelerate with each Herculean play he makes on the field. Powered by lemons, C.J. is poised to have one of the best statistical seasons ever by a Heisman-winning quarterback while leading Ohio State to a national championship.


 * We're honored to have Sloane join our Lemon Perfect team as an investor and spokeswoman for great-tasting healthy hydration. Sloane's championship-level grit, unbounded positivity, and commitment to providing more opportunities to underserved children through education and sports serve as a great North Star for all of our stakeholders, and we are excited for her lemon-powered run at this year's US Open.


 * Our partnership with Jared is exciting for Lemon Perfect as we dive meaningfully into the NIL ecosystem. That Jared is both an NBA prospect and social media star is unique. He is a one-of-a-kind basketball prospect and content creator whose talent in front of the camera and on the court will help drive brand awareness as Lemon Perfect continues its quest to become the number one brand in the enhanced water category by dollar share.


 * Lemon Perfect is disrupting the enhanced water category by offering a better-for you, better-tasting product that is resonating broadly with the American consumer. Today is a monumental day for Lemon Perfect. Jim is a best-in-industry sales executive and passionate people leader whose experience is unsurpassed. His sales strategy will drive  revenue and profit while accelerating Lemon Perfect's rise toward its goal of becoming the  number one brand in the multibillion-dollar enhanced water category by market share.


 * She had posted a photo with it in her limo, and all of a sudden my phone blew up. We came to learn that she was an authentic fan of the brand. A year later, one of our investors was in her house and saw her stash in the fridge and helped us build the bridge with her. It is beyond my wildest dreams to have someone of her influence being a fan of the brand.


 * Nothing with our flavor and health profile is on the market today. And, our price point is at where a consumer anywhere and anytime can become a customer. It is very rare that you can have a total addressable market like we do.


 * Beverage is an expensive game, and access to capital is the only way to drive a fast-scaling brand forward. We want to be a disruptive player in a large category and want to put fuel on the fire. We felt like we were able to drive great execution, but still have room to grow and want to build a big margin story for tomorrow.


 * I knew that flavor was going to be key, so we had to have a product that tasted great and checked off all the prevalent consumer boxes. Everything must start with a great product. You must be passionate about it.


 * Our bottle doesn’t look like anything on the shelf before us. There was never a product created even in the same realm as Lemon Perfect. No one ever said, Can we take something made from real fruit and give it the flavor profile that America craves and do it with no sugar?


 * Publix, Ralphs, and Stew Leonard's are among America's most iconic retailers, and the early velocity data we're seeing in each account is very exciting. We're absolutely thrilled.


 * Given our early turns, we're fully committed to building Lemon Perfect through a best-in-class DSD network that will eventually span across America, so that we can best service both our retailers and our consumers. The Classic Beverage and John Lenore signings are key wins for the company, especially on the heels of an almost implausibly successful launch in Big Geyser's system amidst the dislocation caused by COVID-19 in the New York metropolitan area.


 * The early investor enthusiasm for Lemon Perfect has been energizing and humbling. The brand is resonating broadly across multiple demographics, and that diversity is well represented by our investors.


 * The beverage landscape is dynamic. On-trend, well-packaged, and inclusive emerging brands will become the iconic brands of tomorrow. Our goal at Lemon Perfect is to be at the forefront of the better-for-you, for everyone movement by building products that meet at the intersection of flavor and good-for-you. That so many tastemakers and industry insiders share our vision of disrupting an American beverage ecosystem still largely dominated by high-calorie, high-sugar options is very motivating.


 * Publix, Ralphs, and Stew Leonard's are among America's most iconic retailers, and the early velocity data we're seeing in each account is very exciting. We're absolutely thrilled.


 * People looked at me like I had four eyes when I said I wanted to go to Harvard.