Hint Fizz Charms Better Homes Readers
New awards keep piling up for HINT and its founder, Kara Goldin — some of which we didn’t even know exist. Goldin was chosen in September as one of Fortune…
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Rockstar: 2011 Ended with a $1 Billion Bang
That recent list of billion-dollar brands isn’t complete without Rockstar, according to information supplied by the brand today, Joey Cannata, the EVP of sales and distribution for the company, told BevNET today that he believed the brand had likely passed the $1 billion retail number over a 12-month period trailing the middle of 2011.
Caffeinated Consummation for Coconut Couple: Deal Done in 30 Days
Talk about a whirlwind courtship. It took just four months from organic espresso /coconut water blend Coco Café to go from independent, entrepreneurial beverage company to a strategic piece in the coconut water chess game. The company, which had its first production run in September, had bids from two different potential investors by the end of December and moved into Vita Coco's offices by the end of January.
IBWA Responds to University of Vermont Bottled Water Ban
A day after the University of Vermont declared that the school "will become one of the first institutions nationwide to end the sale of bottled water on campus," the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) issued a statement calling UVM's decision "contradictory and confusing."
UBS: It’ll Be a Monster Year
With continued momentum for new products including Rehab and Absolutely Zero, UBS is forecasting a big year for Monster Beverage Company. In a new report, UBS analyst Kaumil Gajrawala projects Monster’s revenue to grow by 18.4 percent in 2012, with new products contributing five percentage points to top line growth.
Jones Soda Co. to Raise $3.2 Million in Registered Direct Offering
Jones Soda announced plans today to raise $3.2 million in a registered direct offering of common stock and warrants. Combined with a recently secured $2 million credit facility, the proceeds from the sale will allow Jones to "significantly enhance its financial position and will further enable the company to work towards sustainable profitability," according to Jones Soda CEO Bill Meissner.
Vita Coco Invests in Coco Café
After getting rave reviews at the December BevNET Live event -- taking home the award during the New Product Showdown -- Coco Café had to imagine that it would be getting a lot of attention and some new accounts. But apparently things have really accelerated for the Los Angeles-based espresso/coconut water blend, as Vita Coco, the country's best selling coconut water brand has swooped in to make an investment in Coco Café.
Marley Beverage Company Stays Course After Losing President, CMO
The loss of a pair of high-ranking executives at the Marley Beverage Company has forced organizational change at the fast-growing company. In September, Chief Marketing Officer Paul Fuegner left the company – and while the company has not yet filled the role, it has also not yet executed a strategy to fill the position with brand managers for its different product lines.
Chewier than Aloe
The Toronto Star is reporting that Swiss packaging giant SIG Combiblock is preparing to debut chewable drinks -- cartons filled with a variety of fruits, nuts, grains, etc. -- in Canada. As anyone who has worked through bubble tea, aloe drinks, or Orbitz knows, there is so far only a small market for heterogeneous beverages. So it's really your call if you want to go into the biz.
Body Armor Launches East Coast Distribution with Big Geyser
More big news for Body Armor with news that the company has aligned itself with Big Geyser, one of the largest beverage distributors in metro New York. Big Geyser will act as the exclusive distributor of Body Armor throughout New York City, as well as Westchester, Long Island, Nassau and Suffolk Counties. The distribution deal is Body Armor's first on the East Coast.
Repole: Adding Body Armor to a Crowded Stable
After 18 months at the Coca-Cola Co., Inc., he vowed he’d never come back to the beverage game. The big sale -- $4.1 billion for Vitaminwater maker Glaceau -- was over, the transition team was largely in place, and he had other goals in mind. "I don't think any human being could put in the energy and intensity that I put into those years," Repole said of the early 2000s. "I don't think it could ever be duplicated."
PepsiCo’s Amin: How to Build a Billion-Dollar Brand
On the heels of PepsiCo’s announcement that Diet Mountain Dew, Brisk and Starbucks RTD Beverages have each surpassed $1 billion in sales over the past year, Salman Amin, the executive VP and CMO of PepsiCo, penned an article for Forbes about the company’s core strategies in developing and marketing a billion-dollar brand.
Sweet Leaf Wrapup — The Presenters Talk it Out
How long do entrepreneurs wait to raise money, how does an investor ultimately decide if a valuation is reasonable, and what helps to eliminate stresses on a potential partnership. Those were just a few of the topics that the presenters from Building Sweet Leaf Up and Out tackled as they took questions from the moderator and crowd during December's BevNET Live in Santa Monica.
Aloe. Supermodels. Brain-Twist: Introducing Halo
Aloe Gloe might have been the first aloe drink with a mainstream focus, but it appears that Brain-Twist founder Larry Trachtenbroit is aiming to have the prettiest. Trachtenbroit, along with supermodel Petra Nemcova, recently appeared at an industry conference to introduce his latest product, Halo.