Maria Lima: I did a degree in architecture in Portugal, but while still in college I realised designing houses wasn't my calling. I then moved to London to do a Masters in Fashion Production, and stayed there working at a fashion production company. Eventually I felt my time in England was done, and I felt the urge to discover something new. On a trip to Bali, in 2017, I tried kombucha for the first time. I'd never even heard of it before that. I came back to Porto still thinking about it, started experimenting with recipes in my own kitchen, and the batches slowly got better as people started asking for more. Within a couple of years I'd swapped fittings and production schedules for a production unit, and started a kombucha brand called Aquela Kombucha. After six years of proudly brewing Aquela Kombucha, I felt the need to do something new. A soda, not quite the soda we're used to drinking.

ML: Kombucha has humbled me more than any previous experience I've ever had. One summer we lost around 1000 litres because a heatwave hit Porto while we were away on holidays. The batch basically cooked itself before we got back. When a living culture is making the decisions, not you, patience stops being a virtue and starts being survival. When I get buried in problems like that, what helps is realising most of them are small and temporary. I've got a post-it on my desk that just says "everything has a solution." Somewhere in all that, I realised: not every day needs a slow ritual. Some days you just want to open a can and get on with your life. That's Hey Kay.

ML: Honestly? I was tired of pretending I had it together. I just wanted something that helped me get through the day. I need to calm down before a call, reset after a bad one, then find energy to actually make things happen. Three moods felt honest. One just felt short, life is more complex than that, but anything more than three flavours would have been overcomplicating something that's supposed to make life simpler, not add to it.

ML: Adaptogens are natural ingredients, certain mushrooms and plants, that have been used for centuries to help the body cope with stress. What's interesting is they don't target one specific thing and they're not medicine. They work more broadly, helping the body's stress response stay regulated instead of spiking or crashing, so things like energy, focus, and recovery all benefit a bit at once. Lion's mane is one of them, it's known for supporting focus and mental clarity, which is why it's in every can. Reishi's the other, it supports calm and helps the body recover from the kind of daily stress that just builds up quietly. Think of them more like a good habit that adds up over time, the same way sleeping well or drinking enough water does. I wanted the "smart" in smart soda to actually mean something, not just be one more word on the can.

ML: it's one part of it, yes, but not the only one. Hey Kay is an all-natural drink with a clean formula, no nasty ingredients like artificial colourants or preservatives. It's also genuinely low in calories, just 22 per can, and there's no cane sugar involved. The sweetness comes from a blend of natural apple juice and stevia instead, so it still tastes like a proper soda, just without the sugar overdose people expect from one.

ML: nostalgia, mostly. I grew up on MTV playing in the background, magazine posters taped to my wall, a pink Motorola flip phone I was way too attached to. Back then everything felt lighter, even when it wasn't. Now I'm meant to have it together, and most days I don't, so I think some part of me wanted Hey Kay to feel like that era again. A bit pink, not trying too hard to be taken seriously. It's basically an Hey Kay can dressed up as a teenager memory. I'm just a girl on a journey, and my journey happens to have a lot of pink in it.sa.

ML: i think it's long overdue, and it's not slowing down. For years the only "grown up" option at a bar or a party was alcohol or something loaded with sugar, like there was nothing in between. People are realising they can hold a proper drink, something with a bit of ceremony to it, without it coming with a hangover attached the next morning. Better options are finally showing up, and Hey Kay sits right in that gap. It's not trying to replace a cocktail, it's trying to be something you'd choose because you actually want it, not because it's what's left when you say no to everything else.sto.

ML: i was a proper party girl throughout my 20's. These days I genuinely enjoy staying in and having my own time. Yoga and pilates for sport, cooking as therapy, not just to eat. And then there's my small zoo, three cats, Mimo, Jóia and Kombu, and a dog, Veggie. I'd happily have twenty more, but I think this is enough chaos for now.

ML: mostly veggie, and a bit obsessive about it. Pasta's my weakness, I could eat it four times a week and not get bored. I also bake my own bread whenever I actually have the time for it, there's something about the whole process, the waiting, the kneading, that feels a lot like fermenting kombucha, honestly. Slow, a bit stubborn, worth it in the end. I'm not precious about it though, some nights dinner is just whatever's left in the fridge.