Circle Beverage

Circle Beverage's mission is to provide enriching careers for our people, to uplift our partners, and to benefit society through our products and services.  

We are a turnkey contract manufacturer that specializes in complex canned beverage products for high-potential brands and retailers. 

We employ a meticulous, full-circle method of vetting clients and products, then onboarding and integrating them into our manufacturing infrastructure which enables us to act as their integrated manufacturing department.

We have helped to launch and grow some of the industry's most innovative products & brands by adding value through manufacturing services and our adjacent expertise in R&D, product commercialization, regulatory compliance & certifications, go-to-market strategy, distribution, and fulfillment.  Circle's certifications include: SQF (GFSI-recognized), FDA-registered, TTB Distilled Spirits Producer, USDA Organic, and B-Corporation.

Co-Founder and CEO

The Leather Book Library (exited 2021)

The Leather Book Library was founded to be the premier global service for custom book binding (www.theleatherbooklibrary.com).  The company established an international supply chain of suppliers and manufacturing partners, one of which acquired the company in 2021.

Founder

Indiana University Health

As the leader of the IU Health Plans Project Management Office, key responsibilities included:

(1) Developing a world-class Project Management organization with a staff of business and IT Project Managers
(2) Overseeing the Supply Chain function for the business unit: strategy, process, and people. ~$85 M in annual supply chain spend.
(3) Serving as a Customer Experience Champion to transform the IU Health Customer Experience.
(4) Driving multiple strategic initiatives to deliver a step change in performance and capabilities.

Manager, Project Management Office

Rolls-Royce

As the Supply Chain Projects Manager of the US Defense Aerospace business, key responsibilities included leading a staff of Project Managers and Supply Chain Designers, 25-50 project team members, and project budgets of up to $5M. Core accountability resided in setting supply chain strategies for the business unit and executing major change programs. Accomplishments included:

(1) Building an organization from scratch by attracting and developing top talent from internal and external sources.
(2) Decommissioning a manufacturing facility in Bristol, UK and implementing a new facility in Indianapolis, Indiana.
(3) Executing a program to transition R-R logistics work to various third party companies, equating to $5 M in annualized cost savings.
(4) Overseeing a Vendor Managed Inventory program for the Business Unit.
(5) Leader of the 'idea generation' pipeline for the business unit. Oversight of major change programs from inception to final delivery.

Supply Chain Projects Manager

Leader in the Global Logistics function which manages logistics services (transportation, warehousing, packaging, in-factory logistics) for Rolls-Royce across 50+ sites in North and South America. Key accomplishments included:

(1) Aligning Logistics strategies across all business sectors (Civil Aerospace, Defense Aerospace, Marine, Energy).
(2) Managing project teams of up to 10 team members and capital project budgets of up to $1 M.
(3) Led an inventory improvement program on behalf of the Chief Operating Officer (COO). This program was focused on improving the business unit’s cash position.
(4) Governing Third Party Logistics (3PL) provider relationships to manage Logistics operations for the business

Global Logistics Manager

Rotational Leadership Development Program

The Coca-Cola Company

Supply Chain Associate

Beverage Manufacturing & Co-Packing | Business as a Force for Good @ Circle Beverage

I help teams to achieve unreasonable outcomes by serving and coaching them with relentless dedication.  

I am grateful for each of the world-class teams that I have had the opportunity to serve.

Manufacturing is my home. I love the daily collision of workmanship, engineering, and old-fashioned work ethic that is necessary to succeed in this industry.

My entire career has been spent in highly regulated sectors (healthcare, aerospace, food/bev manufacturing). I enjoy the chaos that these industries offer and to have the opportunity to bring clarity to that chaos.

I’m the father of 4 young children. Type 1 Diabetic since 1991. Lifelong health and wellness fanatic. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitor.

LinkedIn is a place where I speak about the topics that I love. Manufacturing, leadership, and business as a force for good.  I hope you find my content of benefit.

I value hustle and integrity over any other human traits.

Partnership is essential in all facets of business.

Banking partners operate behind the scenes, with most people having no clue what bankers actually do every day.

Circle Beverage is lucky to have a great partner in First Merchants Corporation. They have been with us for nearly a decade and they recently stepped up to support an important expansion in our capabilities.

Pictured here with Ryan Mooney, an all-star partner who got this project to the finish line. Thanks to the entire team that was involved with this initiative.

Matt Whiteside

Talks about #copacking, #leadership, #cpgindustry, #manufacturing, and #beverageindustry

We had the opportunity to celebrate two key team members who hit their 5 year anniversary with Circle Beverage recently.

Erin Justice and Michael Branch have been integral parts of our journey and each has become a part of the fabric that is Team Circle. I am grateful for how hard they have worked over the years and for their perseverance and positivity regardless of the situation.

We enjoyed a celebratory dinner and quality time with spouses last week. 

Here’s to another 5 years (and more) with these two great people.

Happy work anniversary to Caleb. 

Caleb is an integral part of Team Circle Beverage. He oversees facility wide maintenance and he has made a measurable impact on our reliability, safety, and performance. 

I especially appreciate Caleb’s focus on autonomous maintenance. He develops our production team members to learn, understand, and ultimately master their work centers. This allows them to operate at a high level, rather than relying on outside help.

Thank you for your service and dedication to our mission, Caleb.

One of the best parts of our work at Circle Beverage is when we have the opportunity to partner with beverage entrepreneurs to bring their ideas to life.  

Due to our size and capabilities at Circle, the majority of our projects are with established brands and retailers.  Bringing products to life with these groups is also rewarding, but nothing beats the feeling of helping a new entrepreneur get their vision off the ground.

I first met Felipe Lima through an industry partner who felt there was something special here.  Felipe won me over with his vision for SPARKLiNUTS, which was to create a functional beverage platform atop the foundation of sparkling coconut water.  His plan was to combine the consumer awareness & acceptance of coconut water with a few simple innovations (functional ingredients, USDA organic, carbonated).  Additionally, he had the patience and foresight that many first-time entrepreneurs struggle with.  

We spent the past year working with Felipe to bring his product to life, and it has turned out great.  Felipe will be participating in the New Beverage Showdown at the BevNET.com Live Winter show next week.  

For my industry connections, if you're attending the show I highly recommend that you connect with Felipe and learn about his plans for the future.

For everyone else, visit SPARKLiNUTS to order & try this new innovation.

#beverageindustry #beverage #partnership

Circle Beverage is a service-obsessed manufacturer of complex and specialty beverage products.

We have years of experience in working with the industry's largest brands down to founder-led startups to bring the next generation of ingredient, supplement, and beverage process innovation to life.

If you are working on something new in the beverage space, please get in touch.

#beverageindustry #innovation #manufacturing

Thank you to the veterans who have bravely served in the US Armed Forces.  Your service is forever respected and it will not be forgotten.

Happy Veterans Day.

Pursuing career-long training is obvious if we want to be an NBA All Star.

It’s less obvious in business. It is tempting to accept that we have “made it” at some point in our career, and that dedication to training/learning/networking is no longer necessary.

We must fight this temptation if we want to become truly excellent. Remain disciplined and dedicated to training and growing until the last day.

“A leader should brighten up the room when they enter it, not when they leave it.” - John Gronski, CEO, Leader Grove 

Leaders must bring the positive energy.

This Thanksgiving I am grateful for the outstanding team members, clients, and industry partners that make the world of Circle Beverage go 'round.

I frequently refer to manufacturing as a symphony.  The symphony would not be possible with out each musician, each instrument, and all of the hard work that goes into preparation and execution.

Thank you to each member of the Team Circle Orchestra for your dedication and hard work this year.

Who will be attending the PLMA  - Private Label Manufacturers Association trade show in Chicago next week?

Circle Beverage will be at the show and we'd love to connect with you there.

Send me a message or a comment and we can coordinate.

#beverageindustry #contractmanufacturing #cpg

Size alignment is critical in the manufacturing supply chain. When a supplier and a customer achieve size alignment, it fosters a stronger partnership. 

Typically, a "large" customer has requirements, production sizes, and operational methods that align best with a "large" supplier, which is specifically set up to support such customers. The same principle applies to "small" customers and "small" suppliers.

I frequently discuss size alignment because I have learned its importance through firsthand experience. This week at Circle Beverage served as a reminder of this reality. 

We received notification from a supplier on short notice (less than 30 days) that they could no longer prioritize our business due to increased demand from their larger customers. As a result, they had to make cuts.

While I am disappointed by this news, as the supplier had performed well for us, I recognize it as a reality of the industry. Every supplier must evaluate their customer portfolio and, at times, make tough decisions to trim their clientele. This process often leads them back to a state of size alignment, allowing them to focus on prioritizing customers that align with their capabilities. 

This happens at every step of the supply chain.  It is important to periodically identify where we have size MISalignemnt in our supply chain, and to plan and prepare accordingly.

#beverageindustry #contractmanufacturing #supplychain

Perseverance is the common ingredient in all success stories.

Not intelligence.  Not money.  Not talent.  Just the raw willingness to persevere and not give up.

Regardless of where you look, the successful people in that space aren't always the most gifted.  They are the ones who just kept going.  

They stayed tough for days, months, and years.  One day they looked up and realized that their competition from the "early days" had all disappeared.  New challengers arise, sure, but they are usually years behind and disadvantaged.

Friendly reminder to remain patient and persevere.

When faced with issues, first look to address the process. Has the process been perfected? Or is there room for error?

Obsess over perfecting the process.

Balancing patience with a “bias for action” is a superpower.

"Character has nothing to do with winning a single basketball game. But it has everything to do with winning a championship."  – Coach Krzyzewski

A theme originally credited to the late Col David Hackworth

“There are no bad teams, only bad leaders.”

Embracing humility and taking complete ownership of our situations, good or bad, is the critical first step towards good leadership.

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