When John Fieldly stepped into Celsius as CFO in 2012, things weren’t going well. He recalls being kicked out of Costco, which was responsible for about 60% of sales. The same thing happened at retailers including Walgreens, CVS, and Harris Teeter. The velocities just weren’t there for what was then a “negative calorie drink” that promised...

‘When you see blue, we need to see black,” Pepsi CMO Says of Zero Sugar. Starbucks Ready-to-Drink Coffee Partnership to Tap Café Favorite.

Executives from PepsiCo’s company-owned and independent bottling system met this summer at company headquarters in Purchase, New York to discuss market plans for 2023. The theme of the meeting was “Fit to Win.” PepsiCo Beverages North America CEO Kirk Tanner said it was time for PepsiCo and the bottling system to “separate itself from the pack in the wake of the global pandemic.” PBNA’s goal is to grow faster than the category, deliver...

Carbonated soft drink (CSD) pricing at US retail for the first six months of 2022 jumped more than +13.0%, and that was before pricing increases that were added this month by...

BD caught up with former Coca-Cola sales executive Jim Brennan a month after he was hired full-time by startup beverage brand Lemon Perfect. Brennan has served as an advisor to the Atlanta-based company’s Founder and CEO Yanni Hufnagel since early 2021, helping open doors at key retailers including Kroger, Costco, and Safeway. That requires meetings with retailers and other hands-on work, and as Brennan was pulled deeper into...

Liberty Coca-Cola Beverages has become the first beverage manufacturer to replace plastic rings and shrink wrap with paperboard holders for can multipacks. The bottler is now using a KeelClip paperboard packaging system by Graphic Packaging to hold together six- packs of 7.5-oz minicans. More package sizes could be added...

As BD reported in an exclusive email news alert on Aug. 8, Coca-Cola will bring its Powerade sports drink brand in North America under the strategic direction of BodyArmor Sports Nutrition’s management team based in Whitestone, NY. Coca-Cola fully acquired BodyArmor in November for $5.6 billion. Consolidating the management of Powerade and BodyArmor will coincide with a relaunch of Powerade...