Several points in no particular order why I think this may be a "good" article (i.e., it's good storytelling), but I'm still critical of this article. While wr

Several points in no particular order why I think this may be a "good" article (i.e., it's good storytelling), but I'm still critical of this article. While writing this reply, I skimmed a couple of food startup companies on Wikipedia. It looks like these guys tried to do a SoBe (started 1996 bought by Pepsi in 2000; they year they started their company) and failed. I'd be very interested in an account of the SoBE story. 1. No reasoning in the article about why they thought this drink would sell. 2. First expenses are to buy two Land Rovers? AFAIK, these are not the cheapest SUVs. And this is literally like in a recent bad movie I watched ("Role Models"). 3. On the same lines, they got an RV and two salespeople to drive around nationwide in an RV handing out samples? Was this drink even available nationwide? I've never seen it. Why were they spreading themselves so thin? 4. No mention in the article about how they got things done on the cheap. Which is a staple of all startup stories. Looks like they splurged on everything. 5. I had to read the BevNet link somebody posted to this article to find out that this drink costs much more than sodas because it uses real juice. It costs $1 to make and sells for $1.29. Is there a tiny probability that this could have contributed to the failure of the drink? 6. I mean this thing costs in the range of Red Bull and Starbucks but they market it as a competitior to Pepsi and Coke? 7. As I kept reading the article, I noticed how everything was being blamed on everybody else other than Bill. Bill did no wrong, and others let him down. I did not see enough evidence to convince me that this was the case. 8. Though billed as wife's story, this article is equally about Bill. So I have a problem that Bill is written up from the point of view of an adoring wife. 9. The BevNet thread shows that there are some people who are very angry with Bill. Btw "Wayne" (he doesn't get the courtesy of his real name being using, I think he's Mike Gilbert from the bevnet thread) has a book out to put his side of the story. This article sounds like an attempt to rehabilitate Bill's reputation. 10. Notice how they heavily criticize LKCM for "attempting" to bankrupt the company. But I'm supposed to find nothing suspicious about Bill proposing a deal with a new investor which would give the new guys 51% of the company (meaning management control with ability to replace Bill etc). 11. In short, at the end of the article, I was completely unsurprised at the total failure of the company. There is only one lesson to learned from this story for me: if hire a Bill, you'll fail. But I already knew that.