@Shadi Atassiis one of the founders of Milonga, a CPG beverage company, with his father as a partner. We've known Shadi since March 2022.

Shadi deserves a highlight because when he first came to us, he was an admitted newbie, but with the most outstanding attitude and willingness to learn. He started with an idea for a ready-to-drink yerba mate iced tea. But then that expanded into a functional cannabis beverage.

Shadi and Milonga have since raised about $300K in funding and launched product lines with distribution starting in California and Florida, and now expanding to Minnesota. He did this all from scratch with guidance from the rest of the advisory team, being a regular at workshops by the founders of Startups.com @Ryan Rutan, @Wil Schroter, and @Elliot Schneier.

According to Ed Kang, director, and advisor at Startups.com, "To say Shadi has grown as a Founder over the year is an understatement. He's turned us all into super fans of him and his company."

Shadi was also recently featured in BEVNET as a "forward-thinking brand, Milonga is dedicated to crafting Yerba Mate-based products that offer a delightful and invigorating experience for the discerning consumer. " Full story here: https://www.bevnet.com/news/2023/milonga-yerba-mate-unveils-functional-cannabis-beverage-announces-upcoming-funding-round-for-state-expansion/

Shadi is also more than happy to share advice with other founders and has been a foundational community member. Make sure you say hi when you get a chance if you're in the food and beverage space.

Thanks, Shadi for all that you've done and we look forward to watching more of your success in the future!

Learn more about Milonga here: https://milonga.life/