The Story of SEEQ

Two recent college graduates started their business and in just eight months have generated over $800,000 in revenue. Ben Zaver and Hannah Perez, of SEEQ, sell a new type of protein powder that mixes more like a juice rather than the traditional thick and milky protein options on the market.

Zaver originally had the idea back in 2020 when he was going to school to be a mechanical engineer. The longer he was in school, the more he realized that engineering was not the career path for which he longed, so he spent time trying different paths which led him to take an unpaid internship at a creative agency where he met Perez.

Once Zaver’s internship at the creative agency was over, he finally landed on an idea he wanted to pursue. Having always hated the taste and texture of traditional thick and milky protein shakes, and not having heard much about a juice-like protein, he began reaching out to manufacturers to produce his own. What he thought would only take one month to launch ended up taking much longer. After a year of reaching out to hundreds of manufacturers, he finally found one that made a juice-like consistency that mixed well and did not have a chalky aftertaste. “I subjected dozens of my friends and family members to taste tests and went back to the creative agency to give Perez and the rest of the team samples,” shares Zaver. “This is the moment that Hannah was all-in on the idea and wanted to help out in any way possible.”

Perez has a background in marketing and entrepreneurship and had her fair share of entrepreneurial ventures before jumping on board with SEEQ. In the past, she started an exterior painting business, ran a student-led business and began her own digital marketing agency while working on launching SEEQ.

SEEQ was officially launched on October 16, 2021, with just two flavors: Mango Pineapple and Strawberry Splash. The first shipment of over 4,000 bottles was delivered to Zaver’s parents’ home in Plymouth.

Prior to launch, the pair knew TikTok would be a major key to their marketing strategy. They got their first viral video by filming live reactions of people trying their protein drink on the streets of Minneapolis. By staying consistent with their TikTok strategy, they were able to sell out of the first 4,000 units in just one month.

One of the orders that came through was from a Jake Cuban, in Dallas, Texas. Zaver saw this name as he was packing orders and thought there was no way that it could be the address of investor Mark Cuban of Shark Tank fame. He was able to confirm that it was indeed Cuban’s address by entering it into Google Earth. Cuban ended up posting a video on his own TikTok, rating the product a 10/10.

Having yet to place a second order, and with supply chain issues impeding production, the pair knew that products would not be available until last March, which meant they would be sold out for four months. This gave them time to create a solid business and marketing plan and secure a warehouse space so they could move out of the family garage.

Pre-orders opened in last January and sold out the second round of inventory before it was delivered in April. At that time, the third round of inventory was also delivered and included a new flavor called Blue Razz Freeze, which sold out in less than six hours. Since then, Zaver and Perez continue to make monthly purchase orders to mitigate being sold out for long periods of time. The team of two became a team of three when they hired Zaver’s younger brother, Will, to be the warehouse manager. They continue to grow at a rapid rate and are already outgrowing their current warehouse.

SEEQ is releasing a new limited-edition flavor in July and plan to launch in retail in 2023. To learn more, visit SEEQSupply.com or on TikTok at @benzaver, @hanxperez, @seeqsupply.