The current generation is filled with creative individuals who think outside of the box, seeking innovative solutions to problems and finding ways to make life easier. And 12-year-old Joey DiRocco of Dunstable, Massachusetts, is no exception. Teaming up with Flavorman, a leading custom beverage development company, DiRocco helped create a new line of flavored hydration drinks in the hopes of giving back to those who have supported him.
Flavorman’s “Beverage Architects” create custom-made recipes and flavors for each individual client, ranging from start-up entrepreneurs to major international players in the global marketplace. Through its in-house capabilities, industry expertise, and product innovation, Flavorman is fully equipped to take its clients’ great ideas and turn them into money-making beverages.
Flavorman was founded in 1992 by David Dafoe and has become an industry-leading custom beverage development company over the last 30 years. Based out of Louisville, KY, the company’s 77,000 square-foot headquarters is one of the largest beverage development facilities in the United States, including a state-of-the-art, fully equipped flavor laboratory, research & development laboratory, warehouse, and production facility.
Recently, Flavorman has teamed up with their youngest client ever, Joey DiRocco, to create a new recipe. Over the course of several months, the company’s Beverage Architects collaborated with DiRocco and his parents, Justin and Francesca Navarro, to develop Sparklytes, a line of flavored hydration beverages that prioritizes all-natural ingredients and sweeteners. Sparklytes’s formula includes coconut juice, lemon juice, monk fruit, and other carefully selected components. It will be available in six flavors: peach mango, lemon-lime, blue raspberry, blueberry lemonade, cherry, and orange.
Flavorman’s collaboration with the 12-year-old entrepreneur was driven by DiRocco’s passion for sports and his desire to give back to others.
“I asked my parents how to create my own sports drink, and they told me to Google it, so I did, and the rest is history,” said DiRocco. “I wanted to help raise money for a nonprofit that supported me when I was in third grade, and now I’ll be able to do that through Sparklytes.”
Motivated by his philanthropic goals, DiRocco pictures a successful venture that will enable him to give back to Easterseals Massachusetts, which is a nonprofit that provides essential services for adults and children with disabilities. DiRocco, who was born with cortical visual impairment, congenital nystagmus, and septo-optic dysplasia, has difficulty seeing without his glasses.
Easterseals Massachusetts provided support for DiRocco in the third grade, supplying him with assistive technology including an iPad, text-to-speech software, and a scope to enhance his independence in reading and writing. It was the Easterseals Massachusetts support that fueled DiRocco’s ambition to create Sparklytes.
Flavorman first partnered with the Sparklytes Brand Ambassador in 2023, and the company remains proud to help make DiRocco’s dream a reality.
“At Flavorman, we spend every day being the steward of someone’s dream. It is such an awesome and fulfilling responsibility, and to have the opportunity to be that steward for someone like Joey is simply amazing. This is why we do what we do,” said Scott Weddle, CEO of Flavorman.
DiRocco’s parents continue to support their son’s philanthropic spirit. With backgrounds in technology, Justin and Francesca Navarro own Sparkworx, a business consultation company that will serve as the parent company of Sparklytes. Together, the two plan to scale up the Sparklytes recipes from Flavorman to commercial levels.
“We want Joey to be successful and eventually take over the family business. As parents, this is our way of giving back to him. We’re so proud of him,” expressed Justin and Francesca Navarro.
Sparklytes’s brand mission is to encourage consumers to spread kindness, raise disability awareness, and live a healthy lifestyle.
