President and Chief Executive Officer, Warrior Energy, Inc.
by Kensie Westerfield
A SELF-DESCRIBED SERIAL entrepreneur, Arthur Ebeling fought the urge, pursued his dream and remained focused on his energy drink company, Warrior Energy (formerly Warrior Tea), based out of Martinsburg, WV.
“Warrior Energy is a tea-based energy drink that is a healthy alternative to the prevailing energy and sports drinks on the market,” explains Ebeling. “It is low calorie and has a low glycemic index, making it safer for diabetics.”
Ebeling and his business partners Chris Perkins and Brent Garrett have been working to penetrate the beverage industry. “We had to raise a significant amount of capital, develop an international supply chain, manage production logistics and secure distribution for our product without the benefit of an example,” says Ebeling. “From the minor tasks to the monumental, there was no one to tell us how it should be done. The beverage industry is very fraternal, and when you are competing against such titanic companies like Coca Cola, it is particularly difficult. We work with the same suppliers and distributors as some of these major competitors but without their resources.”
The Warrior Energy team is not afraid of hard work. “We are thinking big and I hope to give the large companies a run for their money. We are currently poised for an upcoming meeting at Costco headquarters in Seattle where we hope to secure a deal. Accounts like Costco will propel us to new heights.” Warrior Energy is also producing a powdered form of their product for the government sector.
They also understand that it is important to give back. Ebeling knows that sports have played a big role in who he is and he wants everyone to have the opportunity to see the importance of hard work and setting goals. Warrior Energy has donated supplies as well as cases of their tea to children all over the world. For every 25 cases of tea sold, one case is sent to children in developing nations that include Africa, Dominica and South America.
Ebeling was named a top 6 global finalist in the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards in 2008 and has been featured on CNN, AOL News and in Entrepreneur Magazine, SUCCESS magazine and Fresh Cup Magazine. No stranger to success, he has been able to secure distribution for his products in Maryland; Virginia; Washington, D.C.; New York and regions in the West, as well as across the Mountain State.
He has been blessed with success over the years but is quick to credit those who have helped him along the way. “I have always admired my father,” says Ebeling. “He is a man so completely comfortable in his own skin, a man who knows who he is and is happy with it. I always summon his example in following my own path. My grandmother has also had a profound influence. She has been a stalwart of support and guidance throughout my entire life.” He also appreciates the support of investors Michael Goode, Scott and Christine King, Gary and Connie Garrett, without whose contributions Warrior Energy would cease to exist.
By the time he was 19 years old, Ebeling had earned his real estate license and was the co-founder of Pelican Properties. He has interned with Senator Jay Rockefeller, and while in school at Shepherd University, he founded Eastern Isles Teas and Tonics, the precursor to Warrior Tea. Now as the CEO of Warrior Energy at just 26 years old, he gives of his time as a tennis coach and mentor.
Ebeling grew up working with his father at Ebeling Builders and making money selling his rock collections to friends. It is those characteristics from his adolescence—hard work and creativity—that have led to the development and success of Warrior Energy.
Photography by Tracy Toler
