Emily Susman knew she didn’t need alcohol to have a great cocktail. But the Highland Park High School graduate couldn’t find an easy-to-prepare, craveable mocktail that made her want to raise her glass.
So the chef and author drew on her experience and commitment to sobriety to cook up Navi Mocktails, a line of portable, powdered sachets that combine with sparkling water to bring a taste of the tropics to any destination.
“I think Navi will give people a reason to celebrate,” said Susman, who graduated from HPHS in 2001. “(To) have something fun and flavorful that they feel like they’re part of the party, without having peer pressure to put alcohol in it.”
Susman, who spent years struggling with alcohol, began her own sobriety journey in 2021. After a hard night of partying, she awoke from a hangover and decided it was time for a fresh start, for both herself and her marriage.
She’s since lost more than 100 pounds and gained a desire to change the lives of others who struggle to maintain an alcohol-free lifestyle.
“When I got sober, I realized I was like, if I can help one person get sober, then I feel like I will have done my mission,” she said.
Susman began by creating mocktails at home. She wanted to combine tropical flavors with nutritional benefits. Today, her Navi Mocktails include 4 grams of protein, no sugar, collagen, and L-theanine, which has been shown to relieve stress and promote attention.
The name Navi is a combination of NA for nonalcoholic, and VI for vida, which means life in Spanish. The mocktails are available in flavors including raspberry and orange, coconut and pineapple, spicy citrus, and cucumber, lime, and mint.
Since starting her company in June of this year, Susman said she has received supportive feedback and tailored her products to appeal to the sober-curious. Younger adults want to watch what they put in their bodies, she explained, and they’ve made sobriety seem “cool” in the eyes of their parents and grandparents.
She’s also had success in helping others recover from alcohol abuse.
“Don’t be scared to make a change in your life,” Susman said, “because I promise you one thing: getting sober, you will never regret it.”
Susman’s own journey doesn’t end here. She plans to roll out even more Navi Mocktails flavors, as well as to keep helping others climb their mountains and change their lives.
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