Nowadays THC-Infused Spirits Kicks Off New Partnership At Kygo's Palm Tree Crew Festivals

Forbes

4 hours ago

Nowadays THC Spirit x Palm Tree Crew Nowadays
Justin Tidwell has never smoked pot. But he, along with his cofounder Anthony Puterman, is on track to bring the perception THC to new heights. As the brains behind Nowadays , the pioneering THC-infused spirit, the pair is pushing the momentum in the cannabev industry forward by increasing its visibility within spaces it hasn't yet been recognized.
Following a Series A investment round where the company raised more than $10 million, Nowadays is kicking off its partnership with DJ Kygo's Palm Tree Crew live events and hospitality business as its exclusive THC beverage partner.
There are dozens of THC-infused beverages on the market, but Nowadays' primary focus on containing the liquid inside a 750mL bottles instead of an aluminum can sends a message well beyond shareability. Presenting the THC beverage in the likes of a bottle of alcohol is a wink to consumers that it can, and perhaps should, be used in just the same way.
Despite its retail presence in more than 10,000 locations since launching two years ago as the first nationally distributed THC beverage in such a format, the new partnership with Palm Tree represents its emphasis on creating an experiential, communal, luxury product.
'We both came to the mutual understanding of blowing the cap off this thing and showing people that this is what's next,' Tidwell tells me.
Nowadays 750mL Nowadays
The deal between Nowadays and Palm Tree Crew consists of providing Nowadays a presence at many of its live experiences, spanning a wide range of venues, where they will heavily sample the product and offer it at the bar in the form of a cocktail, shot or on the rocks. Those include music festivals in the Hamptons, Miami, Aspen and Basel, Switzerland as well as a monthly residency at Palm Tree Club in Miami. These upscale locations that Palm Tree selects to host its events mimic the intention behind partnering with Nowadays. 'There's alignment in terms of culture and lifestyle,' Michael Diaz, CEO of Palm Tree Crew, tells me. 'Nowadays is building culture within a very high-end demo.'
Nowadays LTO Lemonade Nowadays
Palm Tree Crew, which was valued in 2024 at $150 million, activates each of its partner brands into the fabric of its experiences, which cofounders Kygo and Myles Shear, inspired by Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville empire, started about five years ago. Palm Tree Crew now has a presence in the form of restaurant-hotels, beach clubs, nightlife clubs and music festivals in 18 high-end markets around the world. 'The vision is to take a lot of the experience that we produce in these one-off events, but in a brick and mortar venue,' Diaz says. 'We create that same experience where we can integrate the brands that we're partnered with and can produce it 365 days a year.'
Its first test at Palm Tree Club was during the recent Formula 1 event in Miami, where Nowadays was part of an activation at the high-profile racing event along with Palm Tree's afterparty. 'People were actively drinking Nowadays in substitute of alcohol for the most part and they were vibing out to the music. They were partying,' Tidwell says, emphasising that getting high as opposed to getting drunk didn't particularly make people sleepy. 'It's very similar to the wine effect where if you're at home with the lights dimmed, you're going to have that chill effect, but if you're out and about, you're going to feel upbeat.' The visibility of a THC beverage at a mainstream sports event is beneficial for the entire category.
Nowadays 750mL Nowadays
With other partnerships like DraftKings, Amazon Echo Frames, SipMargs RTD margaritas and Sauz pasta sauce, Palm Tree Crew evaluates any opportunity for its investment arm or activation arm (or both) that may enhance the experience for its patrons. Palm Tree Crew has not financially invested in Nowadays. 'There's a limitless number of opportunities for us to create interesting, unique partnerships with brands that may not normally think of a live events business,' Diaz says. 'The way [Tidwell and Puterman] were thinking about building community around their brand and the type of customer they were going after felt like a fit within the Palm Tree ecosystem.'
In tandem with the Palm Tree partnership, Nowadays will launch a limited-time Lemonade flavor this summer in both a can and a bottle in collaboration with Saint James organic brewed tea.
Nowadays CEO Justin Tidwell and COO Anthony Puterman Nowadays Redefining 'Drinking'
Tidwell graduated from the University of Arizona at around the same time that recreational marijuana became legalized in California in 2018. Browsing a legal dispensary in those early days, he didn't feel drawn to any of the products, leading him to create Green Rush Packaging , developing packaging for cannabis products, which he is no longer actively involved with. 'That gave me an early look at the cannabis market,' Tidwell says. 'All the packaging I saw was 100 mg gummies, vape pens, stuff for consumers that have a high tolerance.' An email later came across his desk about a new, drinkable way to consume THC.
On top of not smoking pot, Tidwell has also never eaten an 'edible' THC product. 'I was always scared of what the products would do to me,' he says. 'When I saw drinks, I thought, 'this is a way to get THC into every American household in a very safe, effective, and low-dose way.'
Nowadays cocktail Nowadays
Over the past several years, cannabis beverages have been increasing in popularity. The subcategory saw a 15% increase in Q1 of 2025 compared to the year prior, and it's expected to double by 2029, according to a report from Brightfield Group. These beverages have been, and largely still are, packaged in a ready-to-drink canned format. In 2023, Nowadays introduced it in a 750mL bottle to the mainstream. On the flip side, several competitors, like PAMOS and CANN , started with RTDs and have since adopted a 750mL format.
'This industry is changing,' Tidwell says. 'You need to really develop a real brand in order to be a long-term player in this space.'
Part of that brand was to label it a 'spirit,' blurring the psychological lines between an alcoholic beverage and a THC one. 'You use it exactly the same way,' says Tidwell. 'You take a shot, you have it on the rocks or you make cocktails.'
While newer generations may be more likely to have an initial attraction to a new product with a new format, the appeal is much greater. 'You can grab the bottle, bring it to your grandparents house, your mom's house, and not feel ashamed,' Tidwell explains. 'And it needed to be very light and low-dose in order to attract a consumer that, like me, is scared to try cannabis products…usually when people are buying our products, it's the first THC drink or THC in general they're using.'
Nowadays THC-infused beverages Nowadays
Nowadays 750mL comes in a variety of doses–10mg per serving high dose, 5mg low dose, and 2mg microdose and has a tropical, fruity flavor profile. The company has also since rolled out 12oz and tallboy cans with several flavors for different use-occasions at the request of customers in addition to 2 oz shots. 'Spirits are still about 70% of our revenue,' Tidwell says. 'We want it to feel like an approachable consumer product…not feel like a weed product."
Many people prefer drinking cannabis to eating it because the effects typically sink in quicker–within minutes. That's because of the technology behind it. Nowadays has partnered with Vertosa , the nanoemulsification technology company that provides the active ingredient in the beverage. 'Relationships with innovative brands like Nowadays help us shape what our standard emulsions look like,' says Vertosa CEO Ben Larson. 'Nowadays showed there was real demand for the 750mL format. Their early success online—especially the viral moments on TikTok—sparked a lot of interest with retailers.'
Nowadays THC-infused beverages Nomadica Bottle Service
You may not realize from an initial glance that a bottle of Nowadays isn't a bottle of alcohol. Introducing itself to the market as a 750mL bottle instead of a can made a statement. 'How do we show consumers that these products are normalized to use in social settings,' Tidwell says. 'We wanted to see these in clubs, bars, restaurants…nobody had really cracked into that yet.'
Alcohol sales are not where they once were amid a cultural and generational shift in the mindset of health and wellness. According to Nielsen IQ data , in 2024, beer sales shrunk about 3%, spirits sales shrunk about 2%, and wine sales shrunk about 5% from the year prior.
Nowadays 5mg low dose 750mL Nowadays
THC beverages still provide some sort of buzz without a hangover, whereas most other adult non-alcoholic beverages just provide the latter. 'Cannabis and music have long been a natural pairing, and products like these, without the need to smoke, make that pairing even more accessible,' says Larson. Nowadays is currently stocked in about 1,500 bars and restaurants, mostly in states like Florida and in the middle of the country, where customers can order a Nowadays THC cocktail with their meal.
"We're just beginning to get real visibility into the THC beverage space through NIQ point-of-sale data, and early reads suggest Nowadays is currently the sales leader in the 750mL format,' says Joe Sepka, cofounder of 3 Tier Beverage consultants. 'With total alcohol volume in decline, these offerings are becoming increasingly attractive to retailers looking to evolve their adult beverage sets.'
VIP areas at Palm Tree Crew events will offer Nowadays as part of its bottle service program. 'Some people don't know how to consume a THC beverage or even think about doing that in the setting of a VIP table,' Diaz says. '[Palm Tree is] a vehicle for educating the consumer…in ways in which you can consume the beverage responsibly in a way that's fun and can fit within a music and entertainment experience.'
There's not a doubt in Tidwell's mind that future generations are going to find it odd that these types of beverages weren't always viewed as socially acceptable.
'Nowadays,' he says, 'this is what we drink.'