Today we’d like to introduce you to Priyanka and Chirasmita Kompella.
Hi Priyanka and Chirasmita, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Thank you so much for having us, we’re excited to chat with you. We’re Priyanka & Chirasmita, two sisters from Seattle, WA, and co-founders of Zero Proofed. At Zero Proofed, we’re disrupting the booze-free industry by creating zero-proof events and cocktails that make the sober curious lifestyle more accessible. We’re bridging the gap between zero-proof brands and the everyday Los Angeles person by bringing nightlife and hand-crafted 0.0% ABV cocktail recipes to the party,
Our love for socializing and celebrating over cocktails really started when we were children. We come from an international family that loves any opportunity to come together across continents and celebrate our milestones with zero-proof drinks made from our grandma’s own hand-crafted syrups and botanicals.
When we came of age, we realized that we love everything about social drinking… except the alcohol. We missed that joy we felt as children celebrating with our family, where alcohol was never a part of the equation. We’re proud to say we’ve recreated that spark. Bring on the toasts, the happy hours, the flavors, the wild nights out – but make them booze-free. We’re dreaming of a world where we drink less booze, have fewer hangovers, live in the present, and create epic memories.
As corporate women, we’ve learned that holding a drink in your hand is important for business, friendships, and celebrations. Yet – there are rarely booze-free options on the menu. In our personal life, we really wanted a space to go sip on sophisticated drinks & socialize.
We started Zero Proofed by creating a social media community presence with the goal of bringing a dry nightlife event to Venice in January 2023. After reaching out to our local community, the idea took a life of its own. Within three weeks, we hosted our first event with a long list of sponsors, a beautiful venue, and a menu we hand-crafted ourselves with top-tier spirits, botanicals, bitters, and syrups. This couldn’t have been accomplished without our community of friends, family, and collaborators.
Today, we’ve had two successful pop-ups in Los Angeles & our schedule is booked out through January, ending the month with a Silent Disco event on January 27th. Our first pop-up was the first zero-proof live band karaoke bar in Los Angeles. The vibe was electric – so much that the absence of alcohol was forgotten that night. Our venue was packed with over 100 people & guests were racing to sign up for the karaoke lineup. Our second event was a holiday party in West Hollywood. We’ve expanded our periphery beyond Venice, working to bring bringing together the sober curious community across the entire city – and we have several more projects in the works to reach our audience nationwide.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s been exciting to work with your sister – We complete each other’s sentences and have great creative synergy. We are both Mechanical Engineers by training, but we actually bring vastly different skill sets to the table. Chirasmita has a background in government & policy and civic engagement, while Priyanka has a background in robotics & rocket development. Together we’re able to challenge each other & also motivate each other through challenges to keep up our momentum.
Both of us work full-time jobs & we love our professions in consulting (Chirasmita) and rocket engineering (Priyanka). While passion is powering us every day, working two jobs is perhaps the most challenging part about Zero Proofed. We hope to expand our team soon to give Zero Proofed all the attention it deserves & requires to grow. We have a long list of ideas in the backlog that we hope to accomplish someday.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
While the alcohol industry is valued at $1.45 trillion, the zero-proof industry is an untapped market sitting at $919 billion dollars globally and is expected to grow to $1.3 trillion by 2027. Yet, it’s currently inaccessible to the everyday person. At Zero Proofed, we’re disrupting the booze-free industry by creating zero-proof events and cocktails that bridge the gap and make the sober curious lifestyle more accessible. We’re one of the first to bring this experience to Los Angeles & the industry is just getting started.
We’re known for expertly curated cocktails made with premium spirits, elixirs, and mixers that are mood-elevating, mindful and leave you feeling great the next morning. We specialize in the full service of crafting experiences to pair well with our brands. We creatively market our events to those interested in trying a night off drinking. We recognize that alcohol doesn’t just exist in nightlife – it’s a cultural cornerstone – and we want to bring awareness to the idea that we can preserve the culture while drinking mindfully during daytime adventures too.
We are proud to be at the forefront of this movement & be a leader amongst such a powerful and inspiring community.
Whether you’re sober-curious, just looking, or completely booze-free, we have a place for you. Please support us by following us on social media @getzeroproofed and coming out to our events! You can find our events list online at www.getzeroproofed.com.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
We love to collaborate with our community! Please reach out at [email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: getzeroproofed.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/getzeroproofed
- Facebook: facebook.com/getzeroproofed
- Other: tiktok.com/@zeroproofed
Image Credits
Photographer: Ezekiel Gonzalez
