Dec. 11. SPRiZZi Bev-Co. will move into the former Michael Waltrip Racing building on Liverpool, bringing a potential of 250 new jobs to Cornelius. The company, which makes the SPRiZZi Drink Machine, plans to upfit the 118,000 square foot facility which began life as Movies at the Lake and years later transitioned to a race shop and motorsports tourist site.

Cornelius Mayor Woody Washam, in the center of the photo, called SPRiZZi’s arrival “impactful” for Cornelius. (Also pictured are Brad Howard, of Langtree Group; Ryan Goff, of SPRiZZi; Tim Goff, CEO of SPRiZZ; Washam; Andrew Grant, town manager; Ryan McDaniels, of Lake Norman Economic Development; and Wayne Herron, deputy town manager.)

“This type of business is unique for our town and I’m eager to witness the positive economic impact,” he said.

The company’s drink machine is an advanced single-serve, cold beverage maker that delivers instant cold beverages made fresh and carbonated in seconds. The “go-to-market” strategy will focus on offices and employers.

The company will be producing “flavor bullets” on-site, said CEO Tim Goff.

SPRiZZi offers a wide variety of beverages, from carbonated water and flavored waters, to soda, lemonade, tea and sports drinks. The operation in Cornelius will house the raw materials that will be used to create the flavor bullets. The building will also be the distribution center for all SPRiZZI Drink Machines.

Goff expects to have production running by March and be fully operating within two years. The main production room will have the capacity for 28 production lines. Each line is projected to produce 20 million flavor bullets per year, resulting in an annual production of over 500 million flavor bullets. 

There were no economic incentives given by either the municipality or the county.

It was an economic blow when Michael Waltrip closed in 2015. “It was concerning to me an our entire board and staff in Cornelius, so we worked diligently to replace that employment base in our community. It looks like we will not only equal but increase it,” Washam said.

The town is helping facilitate discussions with EnergyUnited around rate packages as well as discussions with CPCC around training for employees.

The syrup for the beverages come in small cylinders and come out of a machine that resembles a Keurig. From a business perspective, the product simplifies storage and distribution.

Langtree Group facilitated the lease agreement. Lake Norman Economic Development also helped the deal come together, although there were no tax incentives provided.

The company’s drink concept has been a star on Fundable, raising $622,000 in 2013 and then $2 million more recently, according to the Fundable web site.

The machines are expected to be must-have appliance in offices around the world, and then in homes.

The Fundable web site says traditional soda commercials tend to focus on that tantalizing first sip of pop, when the bubbles are fresh and the beverage ice cold.

“But we all know what goes into getting that first sip,” Fundable says. “You trek to the store, stock up on costly cans and bottles, and cram your pantry with the bulky packaging.”