In 2019, entrepreneur Milan Martin launched his beverage company, Recess, in New York City, driven by a singular, provocative question: why do we feel the need to consume alcohol to relax in social settings? By challenging the cultural necessity of intoxication, Martin successfully pivoted consumer behavior, building a hemp-infused and adaptogen-based sparkling water brand that now generates over $9 million in annual revenue.
The Evolution of Social Drinking
For decades, the beverage industry operated on a binary system: alcohol for relaxation or sugary sodas for hydration. The rise of the
