logo
episode-header-image
Sep 1
59m 35s

Don Vultaggio: AriZona Beverage Company ...

Guy Raz | Wondery
About this episode

What does it take to turn a Brooklyn beer salesman into the king of iced tea?

In the early 1990s, the iced tea market was dominated by Lipton, Nestea, and Snapple. But Don Vultaggio saw an opening. A single moment—watching Snapple cases fly off a truck in winter—sparked an idea that would change his life: why not sell tea in a tallboy can? 

AriZona exploded—outselling Snapple and becoming a multi-billion-dollar brand. 

Behind the success was struggle: Don fought to keep the company private. and faced a painful 10-year legal battle with his former friend and co-founder.

In this episode, Don reveals:

  • How he stayed independent in an industry dominated by giants. 
  • Why Snapple stumbled after being acquired—and how AriZona avoided the same fate.
  • Why he wants AriZona to remain a multi-generational family business.
  • Why packaging can be more powerful than advertising.
  • How AriZona holds onto its 99c price tag


Follow How I Built This:

Instagram → @howibuiltthis

X → @HowIBuiltThis

Facebook → How I Built This

Follow Guy Raz:

Instagram → @guy.raz

X → @guyraz

Substack → guyraz.substack.com

Website → guyraz.com


This episode was produced by Rommel Wood  with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei.

It was edited by Neva Grant with research help from Iman Maani.

Our engineers were Maggie Luthar and Gilly Moon. 

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next
Yesterday
Advice Line with Michael Dubin of Dollar Shave Club
Dollar Shave Club founder Michael Dubin joins Guy on the Advice Line to answer questions from three early-stage founders. Plus, Michael shares his latest career pivot into the screenwriting world.First, Benita from New Jersey asks how to create a “guerilla-style” marketing campai ... Show More
53m 54s
Oct 6
Pressbox and Tide Cleaners: Vijen Patel. The $1.99 Gamble That Built a National Brand
What if the best startup isn’t sexy at all? In 2013, Vijen Patel left private equity to pursue “the least-worst idea”: dry cleaning. No patents. No app wizardry. Just laundry lockers in high-rises, ruthless unit economics, and a $1.99-a-shirt price that was seared into America’s ... Show More
1h 6m
Oct 2
Advice Line with Tony Xu of Doordash
Tony Xu, founder of DoorDash, joins Guy on the Advice Line to answer questions from three early-stage entrepreneurs. Plus, Tony updates Guy on his latest ventures: expanding into grocery and retail delivery - and taking on international markets.First, we hear from Ron in Portland ... Show More
49m 13s
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2024
#754: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ann Miura-Ko
This episode is a two-for-one, and that’s because the podcast recently hit its 10-year anniversary and passed one billion downloads. To celebrate, I’ve curated some of the best of the best—some of my favorites—from more than 700 episodes over the last decade. I could not be more ... Show More
2h 41m
Apr 2024
Mauro Porcini (PepsiCo) | How to Lead with a Kind and Human-Centric Approach Through Design
Joining Jim this week on The CMO Podcast is Mauro Porcini, the SVP and Chief Design Officer of PepsiCo, the $91 billion company by revenue. Pepsi’s founding dates back to 1893 with the invention of Pepsi-Cola in a small town in North Carolina. In 1965, the Pepsi company combined ... Show More
42m 16s
Aug 2024
702: How to Turn a Profit and Improve Lives in the World's Toughest Places (with Former McKinsey partner, Viva Ona Bartkus)
Welcome to an interview with the coauthor of Business on the Edge: How to Turn a Profit and Improve Lives in the World’s Toughest Places, Viva Ona Bartkus. In this book, they argue that by entering markets in the world’s frontline regions—areas stuck in cycles of violence and ext ... Show More
48m 38s
Jul 2024
694: How to Build a "People-First" Culture (with Unicorn Founder and CEO of One Planet Group, Payam Zamani)
Welcome to an interview with the author of Crossing the Desert: The Power of Embracing Life's Difficult Journeys, Payam Zamani.    In this episode, Payam shares the most important lessons he learned from building a record-breaking billion-dollar IPO called AutoWeb, and how it fel ... Show More
47m 40s
Oct 2024
#206 John Mackey: Building Whole Foods
From near bankruptcy after a devastating flood to a $13.7 billion Amazon acquisition, Whole Foods founder John Mackey reveals how a small health food store became an empire that revolutionized American eating. Discover how a single near-death experience transformed a 25-year-old ... Show More
2h 18m
Feb 2024
How Local Businesses Can Compete with Larger Rivals
In 2020, Kwame Spearman left his consulting job in New York City to take over an iconic independent bookstore, the Tattered Cover Book Store in Denver, Colorado—his hometown. Spearman saw an opportunity to reinvent the local business to build a community space after the pandemic. ... Show More
30m 1s
Aug 26
Small Town Billionaire: How John Bragg Built 3 Empires [Outliers]
One man controls half the world's wild blueberries, built North America's largest private telecom, and did it all without ever leaving his hometown of 1,100 people. In this episode, we decode the counterintuitive playbook of patient capital, rural advantage, and why Bragg's refus ... Show More
1h 8m
Oct 6
A Top Performer Sales Mindset Explained | Alex Kremer - 1939
Most sellers tend to get caught up in the technical side—asking the “right” questions, handling objections, and checking all the boxes. But in the process, we often overlook something just as important: the emotional side of selling. That’s why I invited Alex Kremer, founder of A ... Show More
34m 23s
Jan 2024
BREAKING NEWS: Dave Portnoy Now Part Owner of Rumble w/ CEO Chris Pavlovski | PBD Podcast | Ep. 354
Patrick Bet-David, Adam Sosnick, Tom Ellsworth, and Vincent Oshana are joined by Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski. Chris Pavlovski is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Rumble. As a three-time successful entrepreneur, Mr. Pavlovski has over 20 years’ experience in the online ma ... Show More
2 h
Sep 30
I Sold My Company for $22M. Here’s Why I Bought It Back.
Thinking about selling your company? 24 founders told us what really happens after the wire hits. — http://www.joinhampton.com/exit-reportJaclyn Johnson sold Create & Cultivate for $22 million. Then she hit pause – burned out, got divorced, and took a year off to figure out what ... Show More
36m 1s