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This week The CEO Series brought us to New York City where I got to play a heated game of “pink pong” against Jesse Bongiovi, the co-founder of Hampton Water, the highest-rated French rosé in America. Jesse started this company with his dad, Jon Bon Jovi, who you may know as the world-famous musician, back in 2018 and since its launch, the brand has won a ton of accolades and has stocked a ton of wine fridges — it’s currently the country’s third best-selling French rosé.
Watch the video above to learn all about the launch and explosive growth of this company, and to find out which of us was crowned the pink pong champ!
Origin of the company
“I came up with the concept back in 2016. My family had a place out in East Hampton, on the east end of Long Island, for basically my whole life. And the running joke out there was that people drank more rosé than they drank water. My family was no different. And once I turned 21, I started to realize that my friends were showing up with bottles of rosé at bonfires and pool parties. But they were not buying the high-end, classic stuff. They were too intimidated, and it was too expensive. But the liquid was nowhere near as quality as these high-end French rosés, so I started to form this idea that you could create a lifestyle brand, and bridge the gap between high-quality wines and brands like White Girl Rosé and Babe Rosé. So I designed the label, designed the bottle, and came up with this concept of the Hampton Life. We partnered with Gerard Bertrand in 2018 to make the liquid. It is a French Provence style rosé, grown in the Languedoc region.”
A family passion
“For us, this is not a celebrity brand. It’s a family business. And the important thing about our storytelling as a brand has always been the father-son story. Our message has always been that we’re a French rosé that speaks to you in a way that no other French rosé does. We have incredible ratings. We have a unique-looking name and label. And oh, by the way, this is the guy that brought it to you. And so that’s always been the cherry on top. It’s never been what we lead with. Now, does it help that my father is who he is? I’m not too proud to say that it’s not a great way to get our foot in the door. But what we realized right away is that all the press and attention is great, but in the end, it needs to taste great and that’s what has people coming back to buy another bottle.”
Thinking outside the bottle
“This brand is about fun. Playing pink pong and things like that. No other rosé brand is doing this kind of stuff. For me, it’s all about inspiring you to have a good time while you’re drinking this. Are you creating great memories? Are you spending time with those that you love? We want to break down that barrier of entry to make it so that it’s approachable, to make it so that it’s fun, to make it so that a 23-year-old who has never bought a high-quality 90-point-rated wine wants to give it a try.”
Check out more profiles of innovative and impactful leaders by visiting The CEO Series archives.
