Yanni Hufnagel

In 2017, Yanni Hufnagel founded The Lemon Perfect Company, a $100 million Atlanta-based producer of 5-calorie, zero sugar, lemon-infused beverages. His instinct to enter the emerging enhanced water category—competing with drinks like Bai, Vitaminwater, and Hint—was on trend, as he introduced Lemon Perfect, a healthier alternative to heavily sweetened sports drinks.

Many Americans have been looking to reduce their consumption of less healthy, sugary drinks, and beverage manufacturers are answering with inventive alternatives to plain water. Hufnagel established his company with a mission to democratize drinkable wellness by making Lemon Perfect accessible for anyone, anytime, anywhere. The firm introduced the certified-organic, non-GMO, zero-sugar beverage at a low retail price, starting at $1.99 per bottle.

Hufnagel entered the world of value-added water within months of leaving a white-hot career in college basketball coaching that spanned a decade. During that time, he experienced a series of highlights while coaching various university teams, including the Harvard Crimson, the Vanderbilt Commodores, the California Golden Bears, and the Nevada Wolf Pack.

His four years at Harvard saw the men’s basketball team win three consecutive Ivy League titles. During his coaching career, basketball insiders praised Hufnagel, as he signed nationally ranked recruiting classes and led university teams to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament six times.

Seasons of working with elite athletes as an assistant coach honed Hufnagel’s leadership and motivational skills. He transferred these skills and a winning spirit to The Lemon Perfect Company, where consumers’ searches for healthier beverages drive him to higher performance levels.

At the heart of the Lemon Perfect brand is Hufnagel’s spirited personality and instinct to help others through his tenacity. CBS college basketball analyst Jon Rothstein called him “relentless” and compared him to the Energizer Bunny in his ceaseless quest for the betterment of any project he tackles.

A commitment to a healthier world is at the core of the Lemon Perfect business model, and the product checks multiple boxes that attest to these values. All Lemon Perfect beverages are packaged in fully recyclable bottles made from BPA-free recycled plastic. Lemon Perfect drinks are made with organic, non-GMO ingredients (certified by Quality Assurance International and The Non-GMO Project).

Though still comparatively small, the value-added water segment is a subset of bottled water, the number 1 beverage category by volume, according to 2021 data from New York-based Beverage Marketing Corporation. The properties of bottled water highlight the segment’s core characteristics that appeal to consumers: convenient, healthful, natural, and calorie-free.

In 2019, BevNET, a top beverage industry business resource, awarded Lemon Perfect a spot among the Best New Products it celebrated at its annual BevNET’s Best of Awards. In January 2020, the company received a viral boost after it became known that Beyoncé Knowles-Carter drinks Lemon Perfect Dragon Fruit Mango. Lemon Perfect comes in other flavors, including Just Lemon, Peach Raspberry, Kiwi Star Fruit, Blueberry Açai, Strawberry Passion Fruit, and Pineapple Coconut.

In August 2020, Hufnagel and his management team assembled a network of investors that raised $11.6 million to take The Lemon Perfect Company to a broader audience. As the company continued to hit milestones, additional investment became necessary.

In April 2022, the closing of a $31 million Series A round of funding— with backers including Beyonce Knowles-Carter, Beechwood Capital, NNS Capital, and Trousdale Ventures— brought The Lemon Perfect Company’s total funding to $42.2 million and total valuation to more than $100 million

Hufnagel was born on August 26, 1982 in New York City and attended Scarsdale High School, where he played basketball and was a captain of the varsity lacrosse team. He was also the color commentator for the team’s games on a local access cable TV channel—the public’s first glimpse into his exceptional grasp of basketball.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University in 2006, then received a Master’s Degree in Adult and Higher Education (Intercollegiate Athletics Administration) from the University of Oklahoma in 2010.

Yanni Hufnagel is the Founder and CEO at Lemon Perfect, based in United States, North America. With a background in Retail, Yanni Hufnagel has a rich history of leadership and innovation. Yanni Hufnagel studied B.S. Industrial and Labor Relations @ Cornell University. Explore their detailed professional journey, key connections, and contributions to the industry on our platform.