Cooler Business

3 Cooler Business Success Stories [2024]

Updated: October 7th, 2024

Some beverages taste better when served chilled or cooler than the room temperature. Thus, most people invest in a cooler.

To start a cooler business, first, decide the niche, A drinks cooler can be a portable container or installed on-premises. Then, define the target market and research their pain points. A cooler business can focus on brewers, retail shops, or end consumers.

Regardless of the target customers, you must ensure a unique product design and quality materials to attract customers and beat the competition.

In this list, you'll find real-world cooler business success stories and very profitable examples of starting a cooler business that makes money.

1. BrüMate ($144M/year)

  • Dylan Jacob, founder of BruMate, came up with the idea for his unique insulated drinkware brand after a frustrating search for a koozie that worked with his can of choice.
  • He launched his first product line in November 2016 and has since experienced impressive growth (with over $1.1 million in monthly sales)
  • Jacob's ability to pivot and adapt his business strategy has been key to his success.

How much money it makes: $144M/year
How much did it cost to start: $5K
How many people on the team: 57

SMALLBORDER

I Grew A Drinkware Brand To $1.1M/Month At 23 Years Old

BruMate is a successful insulated drinkware brand focused on the adult beverage community, with a flagship product that generated $2.1M in sales in 2017 and is now doing over $1.1M per month in sales, with plans to do $20M this year.

Read by 113,479 founders

2. Knee Deep Limited LLC ($480K/year)

Garret "Buddy" Lamp and Taylor "Earl" Nees co-founded Muff Waders after Earl woke up to find a drawing he made during a night out back in 2017. Initially shared as a joke, they saw potential and now average $3,600 in sales per month, featuring a six-pack cooler in the bibs.

How much money it makes: $480K/year
How much did it cost to start: $34K
How many people on the team: 0

SMALLBORDER

How We Designed And Launched The First-Ever Bibs For Work And Play

Muff Waders is a fun yet practical product that combines bibs for working outdoors with additional features such as insulated coolers, concealed pockets and a bottle opener; since launching in September 2019, they have been averaging $3,600 a month in sales.

Read by 6,966 founders

3. COOLERSbyU ($300K/year)

Garrett Barretta came up with the idea for COOLERSbyU after witnessing the laborious process of preparing coolers for painting during his college years. He saw the need for an easier way to paint coolers and after conducting research and receiving support from the CEO of Jansy Packaging, he launched his business. In just four years, COOLERSbyU has grown from earning a few thousand dollars per month to an impressive average of over $25k per month.

How much money it makes: $300K/year
How much did it cost to start: $40K
How many people on the team: 0

How I Started A $25K/Month Paintable Coolers Business While Having A Full Time Job

How a recent college graduate started COOLERSbyU, a paintable cooler and accessories business geared towards Greek life and DIY crafting, growing from a few thousand dollars to an average of over $25k per month in just four years through mostly organic growth and a focus on SEO.

Read by 10,118 founders