A zero-alcohol community

I’ve become more of a productivity nut over time, and am increasingly mindful of the things that work and really don’t work for me. One of the things I’ve become increasingly reluctant on is drinking alcohol, because of its fitness and energy level impact.

I decided to build a product in this space because of an increased awareness of how much of an underserved demographic there is here. There's no shortage of places to tell you where to drink socially: countless apps and guides, even Google Maps has a dedicated search filter for bars – but where is the opposite? Alcohol consumption is so ingrained into British and western culture that it forms the basis of a big chunk of social gatherings, but that leaves little room for alternatives.

There seems to be a growing movement of alcohol reduction, related to ever-growing interest in wellness, mindfulness and health. It's a hilarious modern contradiction to be on a careful diet, following an intense fitness regime but still recreationally poison yourself once or twice a week.

Looking online at non-drinking content, the information availability feels something like vegetarianism 10 or so years ago – where a tide will turn in the near future but there are no clear social/information hubs for this emerging group yet.

For those people that have taken the plunge to cut back, the options are pretty sparse. Think sipping soda water in a pub surrounded by friends that are drinking.

Just because one person has given up/decided to cut back, it doesn't mean their whole friendship group has. And a person isn't going to change their whole friendship group just for this (and shouldn't have to).

Enter Zero Percent – an external source of information, accountability and support, alongside other non-drinkers.