Clement Pappas is the CEO and a Co-Founder of Stateside Brands, the maker of Surfside Iced Tea + Vodka / Lemonade + Vodka, Stateside Vodka Sodas and Stateside Vodka. In 2015, Stateside Vodka launched as a premium, American craft vodka brand and distillery in the heart of Philadelphia, PA. Under Clement’s leadership, Stateside Vodka was ranked the top-selling Pennsylvania Distilled Spirit in 2018. The company then launched its first ready-to-drink canned cocktail brand in 2021, Stateside Vodka Sodas, and experienced immediate success in the Philadelphia metro area. Following this success, Clement and co-founders Zach Pappas, Matt Quigley and Bryan Quigley identified an opportunity to create a flavorful, high-quality, vodka-based hard tea with 100 calories or less. This led to the launch of Surfside Iced Tea + Vodka in late 2022 and the brand took off like a rocket ship from the very beginning. In just two years, Surfside has become the #1 fastest growing brand across all alcohol beverages at scanned retail and has expanded its distribution nationwide across all 50 states and internationally to the Bahamas, Grand Cayman and St. Thomas. The brand was named VinePair’s “2024 Rising Drinks Brand of the Year” and earned a “2024 Hot Brands” award by Shanken IMPACT, recognized for the #1 growth spirits brand sales performance worldwide from 2022-2024. Before the start of Stateside Brands, Clement was CEO of Clement Pappas & Co., a leading national supplier of private brand juices. The company was founded in 1942 by his grandfather Clement, a hardworking U.S. immigrant who exemplified the American Dream. Growing up, the business played a central part in Clement's life, and he later worked in an executive capacity for the company for 15 years. Clement led the sale of the business to Lassonde Industries in 2011 and served as CEO until his exit in 2014. Before Clement Pappas & Co. he worked for Arthur Andersen Business Consulting in New York. Clement was also honored as Ernst & Young’s 2023 Regional Entrepreneur of the Year for his leadership with Stateside Brands. Clement and his wife Lauren reside in Haddonfield, NJ with their two sons, Paul and Joseph. After tragically losing their premature son Peter in 2015, Clement and Lauren founded the Peter Joseph Pappas Fund with a mission to cure preeclampsia by 2050. Clement is a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute, a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization, and has served on numerouscharitable and corporate boards. He earned his BSE from Duke University cum laude and MBA from The Wharton School, where he was designated a Palmer Scholar.
