The Idea: Benjamin Witte was, by his own admission, "a naturally stressed out, anxious, wired person." After six years working at early-stage tech startups in Silicon Valley, he started experimenting with CBD oil from natural food stores - and noticed something: he felt calmer, more productive, more creative. But putting grass-flavoured oil under his tongue wasn't exactly a great user experience. Witte saw an opening. CBD wasn't the product - it was an ingredient, no more interesting than caffeine. The real opportunity was selling the feeling it enabled: relaxation. In 2018, he moved to New York, formulated a pastel-hued sparkling water infused with hemp extract and adaptogens, and launched Recess from his East Village apartment with a social media-first strategy. This was the beginning of Recess.

The Execution:

• October 2018: Launched direct-to-consumer only, deliberately turning down retailers and distributors. First month hit 40x projected sales with a 5,000-order backlog.
• February 2019: Raised $3M in seed funding as the brand's Instagram-first marketing strategy drove massive organic buzz - pastel cans personified in suits, surrealist imagery, and "calm, cool, collected" messaging.
• 2020: Named to Crain's 40 Under 40, expanded to 4,000 retail locations, and grew team from 2 to 40 employees at their SoHo headquarters.
• 2022: Launched Recess Mood - a non-CBD line featuring magnesium - which outpaced core product growth. Pivoted from ingredient to feeling, proving "relaxation" was the category.
• 2025: Closed $30M Series B led by CAVU (the same firm behind poppi's $1.95B Pepsi acquisition), now in 15,000+ stores including Target, Kroger, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe's - and the largest alcohol alternative brand on Amazon.

The lesson? Witte didn't sell CBD - he sold the counterweight to an overstimulated generation. While energy drinks built a $25B market on stimulation, Recess bet that relaxation would be just as big. Seven years and $57M+ in funding later, he's proving that the opposite of Red Bull might be worth just as much.