Buffalo Rising Online

Mar 4th, 12:30pm By queenseyes

After reading a recent BRO post on SHARK energy drink (and some of the comments), I decided to call Moe Boukadida, owner of US rights for Shark. I was curious as to why Moe chose Buffalo and wanted to know what his plans were for the market. “I’ve been in Buffalo for eight years now,” he told me. “I’m originally from North Africa and came to Buffalo to go to school at UB. It was when I traveled back to my hometown when I realized that SHARK was so big everywhere else, but had no real presence in the US. About five years ago there was an unsuccessful attempt to enter the market in California, but the team was unfamiliar with the US market. I knew that the number two energy drink (currently in 71 countries) could be successful here, so I contacted corporate.”

Not being very familiar with SHARK, I wanted to know what it was that made the energy drink different from Red Bull. “First of all, you should know that SHARK has been around since 1965,” Moe told me. “It’s older than Red Bull. Back then there was only one other energy drink, and that was a pharmaceutical drink found in Japan. SHARK is made from all-natural ingredients (unlike Red Bull) and doesn’t have a chalky aftertaste. SHARK’s fruitier taste makes it more popular for mixing with alcohol, so it’s become very popular with bars and clubs. SHARK has a whole portfolio of products that I plan on rolling out in upcoming years.”

I asked Moe why Buffalo was so important to him, as he did continue to bring up the fact that the city was a major part of his plan. “I love this city," he answered. "Most of my friends are here. I feel sick whenever I’m away from Buffalo... really. And even though I had plenty of opportunities to take SHARK anywhere in the US, I decided to set up US corporate headquarters here. At this point we are employing twenty-five people, and each and every one of them does the work of five jobs. I have a 55,000 sq.’ warehouse on William Street, a smaller warehouse in California, and we’re building another small warehouse in Florida. I've never looked back at opening headquarters in Buffalo. We'll be here for at least the next 100-years. I think that Red Bull is feeling the heat... watch and see… it's not going to be pretty. The Shark limo got tagged with Red Bull stickers last time we were on Chippewa... that's great... they're nervous. We have partnered with a number of local companies... we're teaming up with the bars and clubs and now we have a partnership with The Bisons. We have been doing very well in Buffalo. The city will be our test market... if you can't succeed in your own backyard, then what's the point? In the future, as SHARK grows in the states, everything will be run out of Buffalo. We will run sales and marketing from here, and when people are hired, they will be hired here. Why? Because I consider Buffalo my new hometown.”