Dare to Take a Chance

All entrepreneurs are on the lookout for opportunities to pitch their products. But one executive with Waterlicious, a Marina Del Rey, California-based water manufacturer, recently created his own opportunity when he stormed the stage of a performance from multiplatinum musician-producer superstar Wyclef Jean. The reason: to promote his company’s healthy water for kids. The result: A spontaneous endorsement from the singer. (View video here.)

“It was not planned,” says Patrick Malcolm, better known as “Mr. Waterlicious” since his stunt during Black Enterprise’s 2009 Golf & Tennis Challenge in Orlando, Florida. Malcolm is vice president of promotions for Waterlicious. He says he calculated how long it would take for security to reach him if he ran onstage and told himself, “You have 15 seconds to let the world know about Waterlicious and get Jean to taste your product.”

He considered the risks. “If I had gotten arrested, it would have been, ‘Mr. Waterlicious got arrested.’ If it went great, then it would be, ‘Mr. Waterlicious was great.’ So either way the company’s name would be out there.”

Lucky for him (and the company), the daring move paid off. The 38-year-old wooed the crowd by

joining in an impromptu reggae performance with Jean and then the singer “looked at the bottle and started drinking it like it was the first time he was drinking [water] in 10 years,” Malcolm says. “And the place went crazy.”

And Jean wasn’t the only one impressed, says Lincoln Wentworth Lawson, the company’s founder. “As soon as Patrick got on the stage, a Pepsi

executive (sponsoring the concert) approached me and said, ‘One of the Pepsi VPs wants to speak with you about Waterlicious.’” Discussions between the two companies continue. We’ll keep you posted on Waterlicious’ efforts.

See more of Wyclef Jean’s performance and Patrick Malcolm’s spontaneous moment here.

We want to hear from you. Was Waterlicious’ thirst for attention a smart move or did it fall flat?