Not Wasted is making it easier than ever for Canadians to be present in the moment
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(Rachel Claire/Pexels)
The latest Canadian platform from which we can restock our alcohol-free (AF) shelves turns two months old this August, and boy is it a heavy-hitter. Not only is it impossibly cool in look and feel, it’s also got a meaty philosophy at its core. Alberta-based e-commerce platform Not Wasted is more a portal to a vibrant life than it is a one-stop-shop for your AF fix, though it certainly is that. This Canadian endeavour is here to quench your thirst all while helping you to keep your world in focus.
“Life is to be enjoyed, not wasted,” founder Ryan Mikucki tells Some Good Clean Fun. “[It’s about] not wasting your time, your mornings, your productivity level. That's really where the core of Not Wasted’s name comes from — it's just being more efficient with your time and being able to take on your days clearly and competently.” Alcohol-free, though certainly an option for anyone, is also a lifestyle choice that increasingly more people are starting to explore.
The Calgary-based curatorial site is an acknowledgement of this cultural shift, which is what makes it so all-consuming. Mikucki has worked to create a platform that stays with you long after you’ve proceeded through the checkout process, leaving you with a hankering for a life unadulterated and unfiltered through the haze of alcohol.
(Not Wasted/instagram)
It all started when Mikucki, who co-owns a travel company, was introduced to non-alcoholic craft beer by his wife. “I was just blown away with the flavour profile of this non-alcoholic option,” he says. “It really opened my eyes to what was out there in the marketplace. So I started doing more research and sampling.” He always wanted to have another side project, and he finally found his opportunity in the young but already-bustling non-alcoholic and AF space.
The rest, as they say, is history. Not Wasted launched in June 2021 and now the platform has a growing and bubbly catalogue of craft beer, spirits, sodas, and wine options from various brands. Mikucki is a stickler for good taste, stocking only those options that he would recommend to friends and family, beverages that are memorable in their own right, as opposed to being a dulled copy of an alcoholic beverage.
One of Notwasted’s aims is to make these great-tasting beverages available to a greater number of Canadians. “Some of these brands are not necessarily readily available at your local grocery store or a wine or beer shop,” he says. “So having [these products] more accessible to people locally here in Calgary to across the country, it's more advantageous that way.”
A brand’s aesthetic and philosophical messaging are also something Mikucki looks to when scouting potential drinks for his site. Mikucki loves the outdoors, appreciating the idea that one is in a better position to appreciate nature when one’s mind isn’t blunted by the effects of alcohol. Ideas of adventurousness and confidence inform Mikucki’s decision-making when selecting libations for his site.
Brands like Sexy AF, One for the Road Brewing Co., and Noughty, among others, can be found on Notwasted. One can easily see that these are products with a streamlined and sleek design, drinks and spirits whose creators share Notwasted’s idea that health, vitality, and productivity aren’t worth sacrificing.
“A lot of people over the pandemic realized that they were over-consuming alcoholic beverages and that health was so important to them,” Mikucki says. “I've definitely had dozens of orders in Calgary [so far], but I've also had a lot from Winnipeg, Vancouver, Saskatchewan, even all the way from P.E.I. But the orders that are local here, it really gives me a great opportunity to meet my customers, to be there and understand why they chose me, to build a relationship with them.”
“My brand is not necessarily just to cater to people who are sober and have the sobriety lifestyle, which I do fully respect,” he says. In addition to the shop, the site is home to a tripartite blog section, focusing in turn on “Knowledge,” “Vendors,” and “Community,” which works to raise awareness and pique curiosity.
“I like to think that the difference with my site is it’s not just a catalogue of product options — buy this, buy that,” Mikucki says. “I’m trying to evoke an emotion of the lifestyle movement, the cultural shift.”
