Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/11486
COVER STORY THE U.S. DEVELOPS A CRUSH ON FUNKIN PURÉES A lex Carlton is a man on a mission. As he sits poolside at Skybar at swanky hotel Mondrian Los Angeles, laptop booted up and cellphone abuzz with incoming messages, his eyes gaze into the hazy Los Angeles distance, as if he’s thinking of yet another way to nurture his unique creation: Funkin, a line of fruit purées and cocktail mixers that is re-energizing the craft of the cocktail. Carlton was born in London but is no stranger to Los Angeles, where he previously spent time as an actor and where he recently moved permanently with his young family. Asked whether he ever wanted to play James Bond, “Who doesn’t?” he shoots back. But now, Carlton has an assignment that, for him, is every bit as challenging and action-packed as anything 007 ever tackled: con- quering the U.S. market. From Smart to Smarter Funkin’s story goes back to Carlton’s earlier London days, when he began a business selling fresh fruit smoothies to business offi ces in Soho out of his minuscule Smart car. With his innate entrepreneurial sense, he soon realized there was a huge untapped market purveying these same fresh fruit juices and purées to bars and restaurants. Carlton seized the opportunity. “I started pumping out fresh orange juice, lemon juice and lime juice,” he recalls. He gave up the offi ce rounds to develop the bar trade and soon after, in 1999, developed Funkin. “It was a time when cocktail culture was exploding in London,” Carlton continues. “We not only created the purées, but also created the demand for this kind of product, seeding the brand with top mixologists.” Today, Funkin is found in 15 countries worldwide. june 2010 / the tasting panel / 51