Interview with Hugh Thomas.

“We wanted to create a drink with a brand that told the truth, and contained NO sugar, NO sweetener, NO calories and NOTHING artificial. Enter Ugly!”

Straightforward in both ingredients and branding, Ugly is on a mission to disrupt the soft drink industry with their delicious range of unsweetened beverages. We caught up with Co-Founder Hugh Thomas to get the ugly truth about the brand.

1. What inspired you to start Ugly?
I started the business with my friend, Joe Benn, in 2015. We’d both recognised the impact that sugary and sweetened fizzy drinks were having on the health of the nation, and thought it was time for change. We wanted to create a drink with a brand that told the ruther, and contained NO sugar, NO sweetener, NO calories and NOTHING artificial. Enter Ugly!

2. What values are you most proud of regarding Ugly?
We’re very proud of the brand's attitude and mission. In a world of fake news and alternative facts, consumers crave the truth, and that’s what we’re here to do, tell The Ugly Truth. Ugly makes no false promises, and this runs right through our company.

Internally, our team is tight knit and we support and work together like a family. Everyone knows their role, we support each other and have a lot of fun along the way.

3. What aspect of your brand’s identity is the most important to you?
Ugly is all about sticking our tongue out at an industry that has been saying the same thing for far too long. We’re not going to promise to make you happier, healthier or more beautiful, but we will tell you the truth. We have an attitude and ambition to shake things up… it’s time to get Ugly!

4. Describe the feeling you hope that your product stimulates for your customers.
Ugly is a lifestyle brand and consumers holding the can or wearing the logo (we sell our merchandise on the web-shop) will be making a statement about the type of brand they want to consumer. Our brand will stand for the truth and a new way of doing things…hopefully our fans and community can join us!

5. Do you have a secret, bold, and wonderful vision for your brand that you would like to see become reality?
We want to take our Ugly brand overseas. The USA is our next stop, building something there would be pretty special.

6. What are the most exciting features of digital culture to you?
We absolutely love digital culture. Alongside meme culture (which we all love)…we’re most excited as a business by our web-shop and the opportunity for us to really connect with consumers as they buy product in future whether subscription commerce, SMS commerce or personalised delivery.

7. Describe what epitomises feel-good for you?
Seeing our team work together and grow together is the most satisfying part of running a start-up. The growth we have seen from our young since they have joined is remarkable, it’s a very special feeling to see a team working together and pushing each other to achieve their goals.

Feeling thirsty after this read? Discover Ugly.