Online personalities James Marriott and Will “Willne” Lenney have officially introduced their chilled coffee brand, Rodd’s, to Sainsbury’s stores across the UK following weeks of anticipation from their combined ten million social media followers.

The duo, known for their humorous product reviews and sharp social critiques, is launching three flavors of iced coffee in 300 Sainsbury’s locations starting May 1. After two years of development, the project had been kept under wraps until details began to emerge.

Lenney commented, “We tried to keep it confidential. We only had a simple landing page that we thought was intriguing enough for our fans not to understand. Yet within minutes, they discovered all three flavors and the launch details due to some metadata on the site. They’re a lively bunch, but we love them for it.”

In the buildup to their product launch, the pair dropped clues in various videos, including one from December where Lenney ran an ultra-marathon to meet Marriott for a coffee. Last week, they donned T-shirts saying “FOLLOW” and “@roddsroddsrodds” in another video.

Thanks to their teasing efforts, Rodd’s Instagram account garnered 95,000 followers even before posting its first content. The influencers believe that their foray into the coffee market won’t surprise their audience.

“For nearly seven years, we’ve been creating content and collaborating,” remarked Marriott. “It became clear to us that while working together, one of us usually had coffee in hand.”

The newly launched iced coffee is available in three varieties: cold brew waffle oat latte, cold brew oat latte, and matcha latte with vanilla, priced at £1.70 for an introductory period and £2.20 thereafter. The product is being produced in the Netherlands by AMC Global.

Marriott and Lenney are among the latest influencers to venture into the food and beverage industry, joining the ranks of prominent figures like Mr. Beast with his Feastables chocolate bars and the energy drink Prime from British YouTuber KSI and American influencer Logan Paul.

The two expressed enthusiasm about competing with established chilled coffee options, particularly by reducing sugar content and delivering a “café-quality” flavor. “When you walk into a store, you often end up with a milkshake instead of a true iced coffee. We wanted to change that sugar-laden experience,” Lenney explained.

He acknowledged that while launching a product is a new venture, their over a decade of experience in influencing has provided them with valuable business acumen.

“As influencers, you have to be adept at managing your business and team, and I see these skills translating into new projects. Certainly, this will be a learning experience as we navigate uncharted territories. We tend to have access to incredible opportunities which might be harder for others who are building businesses from scratch,” he added.