Startup CPG Newswire:
Keanu Launches Their Inaugural Product After 5 Years of Work on Kava

PRESS RELEASE — NEWS PROVIDED BY Alexander Russell for KEANU

NEW YORK, NY (November 2025) – KEANU, a new kava brand under the Nothing Special platform, is launching limited-edition Founder’s Kits this month, marking the first direct-to-consumer instant noble kava product that prioritizes efficacy, authenticity, and camaraderie.

Founded by kava documentarian and former Lazard consumer/retail investment banker Alex Russell, KEANU aims to educate American consumers on the difference between traditional kava and the synthetic kavalactone extracts that dominate the current market.

The Kava Category’s Authentication Problem
While interest in kava has surged as consumers seek adult non-alcoholic alternatives, many RTD kava brands use kavalactone extracts rather than actual kava beverage. These extracts chemically isolate kavalactones using solvents like CO2, ethanol, or acetone, offering easier sourcing and stability but failing to deliver the full-spectrum effects of traditional kava.

“Kavalactone extracts are to kava what caffeine pills are to coffee,” Russell said. “That’s why the category hasn’t blown up yet.”

A Five-Year Journey to Market
Russell’s path to launching KEANU began with multiple trips to Pacific Island nations, where he documented kava culture and experienced firsthand its ceremonial and social significance. He shared kava stories from the Pacific through short documentaries and with Old Root, a ‘kava table book’, before developing KEANU’s product line.

“I spent 5 years diving deep into kava in order to develop a product consumers would actually love,” Russell said.

The Product
KEANU’s Founder’s Kits ($79.99) contain three varieties, or cultivars, of instant noble kava – Kelai, Puariki, and Melo Melo – in 10-gram stick packs, along with a custom glass, whisk, instructions, and educational materials. Unlike kavalactone extracts, KEANU’s instant noble kava powder is crafted through traditional methods: grinding fresh noble kava, mixing with water, straining, and dehydrating the result.

“If it doesn’t make you feel like you would drinking kava at a kava bar in Vanuatu, then we don’t ship it,” Russell added.

KEANU is launching exclusively direct-to-consumer with just 100 Founder’s Kits available this month, allowing the brand to educate consumers and ensure they have a great first kava experience without the high costs of retail entry. Russell likens his mission to how GT’s Kombucha and Yerba Madre (FKA Guayaki) introduced American consumers to traditional functional beverages enjoyed elsewhere.

In Vanuatu, there’s approximately one kava bar for every 100 people – a testament to the popularity of traditional kava beverage.

“It’s just a matter of when and not if kava becomes a globally enjoyed beverage.” Russell said.

For more information and to join the waitlist for Founder’s Kits, visit: https://drinkkeanu.com/pages/waitlist

Media Contact:
Alex Russell
Founder, KEANU / Nothing Special
alex@drinkkeanu.com
+1-571-748-8322

About KEANU

KEANU is bringing kava, the alcohol alternative that actually makes you feel great, to health-conscious Americans looking to socialize and relax without alcohol.

Launching online in 2025, KEANU’s instant noble kava drink mixes offer the tastiest, most convenient, and truest kava experiences outside of the Pacific Islands – just tear, mix in water, and enjoy The Perfect Buzz.

Kava is the non-alcoholic social beverage of the Pacific Islands. Millions of people drink kava for its ability to promote relaxation without diminishing health or mental clarity.

KEANU is part of the Nothing Special Co. family of brands.

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