Non-alcoholic beverage maker Mixoloshe has officially rebranded as Smashd — a fitting name considering what one of the startup’s recent employees has been up to as of late.  What Happened: When Mixoloshe launched in 2022, it racked up a number of awards for its various mocktail options, including Blueberry G&Ts and Tropical Smoky Margaritas. Despite the tasty product, and the rising “sober curious” trend, interest in Mixoloshe waned. A part of that struggle was simply breaking through the noise. After all, there are approximately 3,810 non–alcoholic beverage companies in the U.S., alone. And cracking the algorithm code on social media to sell a brand is tricky, depending on the platform. On X, formerly Twitter, Mixoloshe has just over 630 followers as of June 10. But on Instagram, the brand touts 91,000 followers, largely attributed to a clever marketing strategy. See Also: Sam Adams Says Hold My Beer — And You Are: Sales Numbers Dispute Cannabis Cannibalization Narrative Mixoloshe brass crafted an entire career-on-the-line narrative around one of its employees, Nicole Wingard (aka “Nicole The Intern”). Unless Wingard amassed 500,000 followers by June 10, she’d be fired. The ruse worked. Audiences dug the stick-it-to-the-boss storyline, which was amplified by Wingard’s offbeat videos. Whether she dressed as the Hulk, a Ghost Buster or a House Targaryen member, thousands ...