Nicole Pietrandrea Hough for AFTER Magazine: It’s so great to talk to you! I’ve been a longtime fan of Grüvi. I’d love to hear the story of how you got started creating the company. What was your inspiration?

Anika Sawni: My brother Niki and I launched Grüvi together in 2019. I had just graduated from McGill University with a degree in neuroscience and psychology, and I was preparing for med school and planning to become a neurosurgeon.

There was definitely a “work hard, party hard” culture at university. Even though I was really focused on school and my grades, drinking had become a mindless action for me. When I would go out with friends or go to a restaurant, everyone was always drinking. No one questioned it. I didn’t consider whether I really wanted to drink or how I felt after drinking. The nonalcoholic choices were always either water or sparkling juice. There were a few long-standing players offering nonalcoholic options at the time, but they weren’t products with a lot of excitement behind them. So I would have a cocktail because it was the more fresh and fun option.

My last year at school, I started to question my relationship with alcohol. I got into the sober-curious trend and found myself wondering why drinking culture is so normalized. [Once I cut back on] alcohol, I started to notice the plethora of benefits that came with that. The biggest one for me, besides it being easier to focus on my work, was that I started to experience more true joy and to feel more present in life. I realized this was something I was interested in pursuing and noticed that one of the biggest barriers to actually making that transition was having delicious, fun beverages to choose from. I wanted to go out with my friends and have something fun to drink and I didn’t see [many nonalcoholic options] in the market at that time.