A beverage company with beginnings in the kitchen of a Dunedin student flat has credited a now two decades-old initiative as paving the way for its success.

Cheeky Hard Iced Tea was joined by fellow businesses PledgeMe and PocketSmith at the University of Otago’s School of Business yesterday for an event hosted by Startup Dunedin celebrating the past 20 years of student startups.

All were involved in the organisation’s Audacious startup programme — a Dunedin City Council-sponsored initiative for University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic students to help start their own business, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Co-founders Brendan Yielder and Olivier Despatis were Audacious winners in 2020.

The pair had both lived in Canada and noticed a gap in the New Zealand market for alcoholic iced tea, which culminated in the beverage business.

The recipe was conceived in the kitchen of their student flat, Mr Yielder said.

Now celebrating its five-year anniversary, the company supplies about 1000 liquor stores nationwide.

Audacious had been “super important” when building the business in the beginning.

“It was a really good foundation for us to go out and execute on our idea, a really good starting point.”

They initially launched the product at the 2020 Dunedin Craft Beer and Food Festival, where they sold out of 400 litres halfway through the event’s second day, he said.

“We were right there on the turf next to some really big brands that we looked up to.

“I’m not sure that if we were starting out in Auckland, say, we would have been given that shot.”

Their first production run of 30,000 cans was done at a local brewery, before a full-scale launch at O Week in 2021.

Everybody knew each other in Dunedin and there were “amazing connections” who were keen to help, Mr Yielder said.

Their sales in Dunedin gave retailers around the country the confidence to give them a chance.

“Dunedin was just the right size for us to figure out how to do this.”

Startup Dunedin general manager Rachel Butler said there were many “touch points” within the university and Dunedin life that helped students to build a startup.

As well as Audacious, the Bachelor of Entrepreneurship introduced in 2022 was another way the university had backed entrepreneurship in the city.

Ms Butler said if students were willing and able, Dunedin was the easiest place in New Zealand to build a network.

“People are sincerely interested and believe the next great idea may come from a student while they’re studying.”

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