From Laughter to a Global Movement: The Story Behind FreeWater

Three different FreeWater bottle ads!

Every revolutionary idea sounds impossible at first — and FreeWater was no exception. When founder Josh Cliffords first set out to create free and negatively priced products, he had no background in bottled water, no experience in software, logistics, or manufacturing, and no knowledge of social media or marketing. He had to start completely from scratch, learning every part of the business piece by piece.

What made it harder was that almost no one believed him. When Josh spoke about his long-term vision — not just free water, but entire supermarkets where essentials cost nothing and were actually better than free— most people laughed. They couldn’t imagine a world where products were free and still profitable. But Josh kept going. It took years of design, planning, and iteration to turn the idea into a functioning reality. Then, just as momentum was building, the pandemic delayed everything for several more years.

But persistence pays off. When FreeWater finally launched, it quickly went viral on social media, capturing the imagination of millions of people around the world. What started as a one-person mission has now become a global movement. Inspired by FreeWater and Josh’s new book How to Make a Free Product Company, startups around the world are launching their own free water and free food businesses — proof that this isn’t just an idea anymore. It’s a growing reality. Even Liquid Death took a page from FreeWater's book when they sold ad space on their secondary packaging during the 2024 Super Bowl.

The road was long, difficult, and full of doubters. But FreeWater’s journey is a reminder of something bigger: when an idea’s time has come, nothing can stop it. And this is just the beginning.