Lance Collins, the beverage entrepreneur behind FUZE, NOS, BODYARMOR and CORE Hydration, is bringing his latest brand, ZenWTR, into the convenience channel through retail partners that include QuikTrip, Circle K's Frontier Division and Kwik Trip. The vapor-distilled alkaline water carries a pH of 9.5 and is packaged in bottles made from 100% recycled, certified ocean-bound plastic — a positioning Collins is betting resonates with the grab-and-go shopper increasingly scrutinizing single-use packaging.

H-E-B locations join the distribution map on October 5, adding a high-traffic Texas grocery-and-fuel footprint to existing placements at Whole Foods Market, Walmart, Amazon, Bristol Farms and Erewhon.

The Product Specs

ZenWTR's production process starts with vapor distillation, followed by ionization through electrolysis to achieve the 9.5 pH target. The brand then adds a proprietary mineral-and-electrolyte blend — calcium, potassium and magnesium — to deliver what Collins describes as a crisp, clean finish. The core forecourt SKU is a 20-ounce bottle sized for single-serve impulse purchase, a format that fits naturally in the cold-vault doors where premium water competes directly against BODYARMOR Lyte, Smartwater and Essentia.

ZenWTR also produces an Alumi-Tek aluminum bottle format. For each qualifying Alumi-Tek unit, the brand supports recovery and recycling of the equivalent of five ocean-bound plastic bottles.

Sustainability as a Sales Argument

ZenWTR became the first beverage brand globally to receive Plastic Negative Certification following a third-party audit of its plastic footprint. Through a partnership with the Plastic Credit Exchange, the brand funds recovery and recycling programs equal to 200% of its annual plastic footprint — meaning it removes twice as much plastic as it produces. Source material has been collected in Indonesia, Thailand, Ecuador and Paraguay, with supply partners establishing local collection infrastructure and bottle-deposit programs.

The company also directs 1% of ZenWTR revenue to ocean conservation and recycling education in the United States. For c-store operators, that sustainability story doubles as a shelf-talker advantage in the premium water set, where price-per-ounce parity among leading SKUs makes brand narrative an increasingly important purchase driver.

"We want to prove that consumers do not have to compromise on quality or taste to support meaningful environmental impact," Collins said. "Every bottle is an invitation to rethink what an everyday purchase can accomplish."

Investor Backing and Athlete Partnerships

ZenWTR has attracted a broad investor roster that includes Travis Kelce, Phil Knight, Bryson DeChambeau, Phil Mickelson, James Harden, Aaron Rodgers, Khloé Kardashian and several entertainment figures. Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby is among the brand's athlete partners. That kind of celebrity equity tends to translate into social-media pull-through that supports impulse trial at the dispensed-beverage and cold-vault level — the same playbook that propelled BODYARMOR's c-store velocity before its acquisition by Coca-Cola.

Premium water remains one of the fastest-turning single-serve categories inside the convenience store. NACS data has consistently shown bottled water outpacing carbonated soft drinks in unit growth across the channel, with alkaline and functional-water subcategories capturing a disproportionate share of the premium price tier. Collins has navigated that functional-beverage landscape before, and ZenWTR's c-store-inclusive launch strategy signals he intends to scale through the channel rather than around it.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.