The freeze is not the drink. It is the board. Sidekick costs more to buy than post-mix Coke, so it cannot sit on the menu as a cheaper Coke, a diet soda, or a wellness shot.
This is how to list it so the price makes sense. Live case pricing stays on Upstock. Nothing here is a price list.
Do not list it as Coke
Coke is a post-mix pour. Sidekick is a 250ml can — honey, real fruit, no cane sugar, no stevia. If the board says “soda” next to a fountain price, you have already lost the argument.
Put it with the other adult soft drinks and bottled / canned serves, not with the post-mix column. People who want fountain Coke will still buy fountain Coke. This is for the person who wants a soda that is actually a soda.
Name the serve, not the category
On the menu or the specials board, one line is enough:
Sidekick — honey-sweetened soda, no cane sugar. Flavour names under it: Cherry, Mango, Pear, Strawberry.
Do not write “better for you,” “low sugar,” or “ACV tonic.” That puts it in the kombucha row in their head, and they will compare it to a $7 wellness drink or a diet can. It is a treat. Say the treat.
Staff, if anyone asks: honey-sweetened, no cane sugar. Then stop talking.
Cans on the fridge (and on the list)
Cans live in the cold-drink door at hand height — how NZ cafés add a honey soda to the fridge. Price them as a takeaway can or a sit-down soft drink — pour to a glass at the table if you want, but stock cans. Glass bottles are not the wholesale path: Cans vs glass for cafés.
Set the board from the case, not from Coke
Open Upstock. That is the case price and GST invoice. Work the board from that number the same way you price other bottled drinks — coffee, kombucha, fancy water — not from what you pay for syrup.
If the margin only works when you pretend it is Coke, do not list it. If it works as a bottled serve, list it that way and leave it alone.
Order path
Trade page: wholesale soda for NZ cafés and retailers. 12-pack cases, 5-case minimum, mix flavours across cases.
Walkthrough: How NZ trade buyers order on Upstock. Or email Fiona.
