Introducing Rabbittown, a specialty craft beverage retailer

Located in Fredericton, N.B., Rabbittown Beverages creates hand-crafted, non-alcoholic, cold brew teas. During an e-interview, owner Stef Loukes shared her journey.

What’s unique about Rabbittown?

SL: Rabbittown is unique because we are a women-owned, LGBTQ+ proud company that specializes in hand-crafted, cold brew tea. Here at Rabbittown, we want to create a community where our customers can be themselves, feel positive vibes, and enjoy delicious beverages.

What types of product do you have?

SL: We currently sell two flavours: peach & basil and blueberry & hibiscus. The former is a lightly carbonated tea made with organic tea leaves from Assam, India. The latter features locally produced blueberries and is made with a rooibos and hibiscus tea that is naturally decaffeinated.

How are you supporting the local economy?

SL: We are huge supporters of supporting local and the community of Fredericton has been so amazing to us as a company that its only fitting we return the favour! We sponsor many local events, such as the East Coast Music Awards this May, as well as local artists and other talents that make Fredericton so special. Through creating our products and this brand, we can continue to make an impact in our community while also providing our customers with a kick a$$ product!

Stef Loukes

When did you launch?

SL: We launched in April of 2020 and our first order was delivered in June 2020! Launching at the beginning of the pandemic was not easy but we have created a brand that is well known in New Brunswick and becoming a well-known brand in Atlantic Canada. Our growth since April 2020 has been constant and we are so excited for the future of Rabbittown Beverages!

What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?

SL: You’d think it would be easy to slap some tasty bevvies into cans. Unfortunately, there’s so many challenges! Whether it’s label requirements, brewing facilities, recipe development, filtration processes, sourcing local ingredients, sourcing plant-based ingredients and making sure we live by our motto “All the fun without the sketchy stuff”. At times, it wasn’t fun, but there’s always an answer to a problem, you just have to ask a lot of people.

What are your future plans?

SL: We have a few really exciting plans coming up throughout 2022! One big milestone that we hit earlier this year was launching our online shopping experience where people across Canada can have our product shipped directly to their door. We also have a new flavour coming out near the end of April. We would like to introduce our Hop Tea! In partnership with Grimross Brewing Company, we created a non-alcoholic beverage that has no added sugar. We are so excited to launch this new product and we cannot wait for everyone to taste it. We will also be launching a few new flavours later this year!