There is a gentle lucidity in Liz Breuer’s eyes. It’s an expression seen in the eyes of those who know where they’ve come from, but above all where they want to go.
It’s been ten years since Breuer left Luxembourg for New York to pursue a dream she’d had since she was a teenager: to work in fashion. Trained at the Fashion Institute of Technology, she first plunged into the world of luxury before changing direction. Too much glitter, not enough meaning. Underneath the varnish, the dream no longer matched up so well with her values. “I love the fashion industry,” says Breuer. “But I was shocked by its destructive impact. I wanted to do things differently, have a positive impact.”
Breuer worked for Olivia Palermo and The Row before starting New Normal Bureau, a marketing agency that works with purpose-driven brand and organisations across the fashion, beauty, fitness and tech space. Then Mysa came along, an instinctive, organic development. “I used to help lots of startups launch their products, but I didn’t have one of my own,” Breuer explains. “And as I’ve never drunk, I wanted to create something I couldn't find anywhere else: a drink without alcohol, without sugar, without compromise.”
Mysa (pronounced "mi-sa") is a Swedish word, meaning “to feel good about yourself.” Look no further, the word says it all. “Many people are only comfortable with a glass of alcohol in their hand,” adds Breuer. “We want to change that.”
The result is a bespoke recipe, developed with a manufacturer between Turin and Milan: 12 ingredients, white grapes, tomato juice for umami, spiciness, herbs, zero added sugar. It’s a drink conceived as an elegant ritual, to be enjoyed like a fine wine. As an aperitif, “or when you come back from a workout. The spicy side gives the perfect little kick,” jokes Breuer. Why not? Just for the pleasure of the taste.
Mysa, a drink designed as an elegant ritual, is meant to be enjoyed like a fine wine. Photo: Handout
Hearing Breuer speak, you get a clear vision. Mysa is not just another drink: it’s a manifesto, a cultural gesture. A way of saying no without apologising, a way of rejecting compulsory drunkenness, labels and boxes. To make way for a sobriety that is accepted, chic and liberating. “When I was 16 in Luxembourg, I didn’t drink. People looked at me like I was an alien. Today, thanks to social networks, other stories are emerging. And above all, they're cool.”
Let’s talk about the “cool” aspect, which is present everywhere in the project. In the name, in the stylishly designed cans, in the carefully chosen events. Trendy, chic and healthy, Mysa taps into an underlying trend: the quest for well-being. It’s a trend that Breuer embodies to perfection, both in her life and in her business.
And yet, although she is now at the head of a fast-growing brand--present in Luxembourg and coming soon to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam--her path was not an easy one. “My school in Luxembourg didn’t prepare me for this,” says Breuer. “We didn’t talk about entrepreneurship. It was here in New York, seeing young women my age setting up their companies, that I realised that I could do it too.” Just do it.
Liz Breuer is at the head of a fast-growing brand, now present in Luxembourg and soon in Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. Photo: Handout
So she went for it. No mentor, no safety net--just a strong intuition, a taste for freedom that drives her to constantly reinvent herself, and a certainty that “if you don’t do it, someone else will.” Breuer says it calmly, but straightforwardly--like everything she does. Because behind the elegance of her approach lies a powerful ambition: to give everyone the right to choose. To drink differently, to make different lifestyle choices, to stay true to oneself, whatever the cost.
This article was originally published in .