Ronnie Shugar's path into Sarasota business circles started with a Target buyer's phone call. He tells the story of how the retailer approached him to develop a personal-care line, which became Raw Sugar, a brand he built with then-girlfriend and co-founder Donna Mullis in 2014. Sold exclusively through Target before later expanding into Walgreens, and never sold directly to consumers online, Raw Sugar grew into a brand worth more than $100 million, an origin story most guests on this show cannot match.
That success is what funded his move into Sarasota, where Shugar has become one of downtown's more visible investors. He estimates roughly $15 million put into the area so far, including the Sugar Palm building on Palm Avenue, and now serves as vice chair of the Downtown Improvement District board, giving him a direct hand in shaping the streets he is investing in.
A Zoning Fight Over Champagne
The centerpiece of the conversation is the Sugar Champagne Bar, Shugar's soon-to-open concept located across from The Mark in downtown Sarasota. Getting there was not simple. He walks through a zoning fight involving a nearby church and residents who pushed back on the project, a fight he says he ultimately worked through to get the bar approved and moving toward its opening. It is a rare, specific look at the friction between downtown Sarasota development and the neighbors closest to it.
Roundabouts and Rapid Fire
Asked about Sarasota's roundabouts, Shugar stays largely impartial, noting the ones he has run into were not a city issue at all but a state DOT or federal matter outside local control. The hosts wrap with the Rapid Fire Gauntlet, but the episode's real value is in watching a cosmetics entrepreneur turn Target shelf space into a downtown Sarasota real estate portfolio.
From a Target hallway pitch to a $100 million brand to a champagne bar fighting through zoning, Ronnie Shugar's Sarasota story is one of the more unusual entrepreneurial arcs the show has featured. It also reinforces a theme that keeps coming up on Sarasota SpeaX: outside money and outside ambition, when paired with genuine local investment, can reshape a downtown block by block.
What you'll take away
- Raw Sugar was built exclusively through Target starting in 2014 and grew into a brand worth more than $100 million.
- Shugar co-founded Raw Sugar with then-girlfriend Donna Mullis and later expanded distribution into Walgreens.
- He has invested roughly $15 million into downtown Sarasota, including the Sugar Palm building on Palm Avenue.
- The Sugar Champagne Bar faced a zoning fight involving a nearby church and residents before moving forward.
- Shugar serves as vice chair of the Downtown Improvement District board.
“It wasn't a city issue, it was a DOT issue.”
Places mentioned: Downtown Sarasota, Palm Avenue, The Mark, Sugar Champagne Bar