“Just Do Your Best”: Heaps Normal Is Running a Campaign Encouraging People To Create Mindful Drinking Habits for Every Day (Not Just This Month)

Earlier this year the non-alcoholic Heaps Normal Quiet XPA topped the charts, nationally outselling all other beers – alcoholic and non-alcoholic – at online store Beer Cartel. It was reported as a sign of a new sobriety movement on the rise, one that’s increased from 1.5 million people choosing a booze-free lifestyle in 2016 to 1.9 million in 2019, according to a survey by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

But being completely sober isn’t for everyone, says Andy Miller, co-founder of Canberra-based Heaps Normal. “The key to lasting healthy behaviours is reflecting on what works for you personally – creating your own normal.”

In a month when more than 10 million Australians have experienced lockdown, it’s likely some people opted out of July’s famous sobriety challenge for fear of failure.

“I always found them difficult to sustain for the whole month – there’s always some reason to jump off the campaign,” says Miller. “What Dry July and other temporary sobriety initiatives do is great for starting the conversation – and [the campaigns have] shone a really important light on alcohol consumption in Australia – but we recognise it doesn’t work for everybody. We want to provide an alternative way that’s relevant to other lifestyles,” he says.

During July, Heaps Normal is donating $10 from every case of non-alcoholic beer sold on the company’s site to Hello Sunday Morning, a not-for-profit Australian organisation helping people change their relationship with booze.

“We’re not out there saying, ‘Buy Heaps Normal’; we’re actually saying, ‘Continue to enjoy the lifestyle you choose,’ whether or not that includes alcohol. And if it does, enjoy some of the amazing craft beers and natural wines if that’s what [you’re into] – as long as you’re reflecting on what’s genuinely working for you.”

Heaps Normal is calling its campaign “Normal July”. The goal is to offer support for people looking to make long-term changes to their drinking habits.

“We don’t think long-term change comes from an all-or-nothing approach,” says Miller. “Don’t be too hard on yourself is the first message. Decide to have one less beer or take one night off during the week.”

As part of the push to “just do your best”, Heaps Normal is giving away its Red Rattler – an old delivery van full of goodies – in a competition. All you have to do is to tell them, in 50 words or less, about a time when you were “just doing your best”.

What motivates Miller to cut back on the fun juice every now and then? “There are things that are more important to me than being written off,” he says. “For me it’s about a balance that works for my lifestyle. There are other things that I like to achieve and do during the week that don’t necessarily fit with alcohol.

“But also, being a beer fan, I want to continue to appreciate the different flavours and kinds of beer that are out there, and I want it to be a special occasion – rather than something that happens without thinking and, in that sense, [is] a bit of a mindless choice.”

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