Can you smell what The Rock is cooking? Molson Coors certainly can.
Having established a national footprint, ZOA Energy — the plant-based beverage brand co-founded by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and distributed through Molson Coors Beverage Company — is preparing to launch its first televised marketing campaign beginning with a 30-second spot during the opening ceremony of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
According to ZOA CEO Mike Pengue, the new commercial features Johnson and emphasizes a “positive energy” message. The ad opens with Johnson talking about “everyday warriors” and showcases various demographics, including working parents and college students, while a version of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” with new lyrics written and sung by Johnson’s wife Lauren Hashian plays on the soundtrack.
Though Johnson has been a face for ZOA since its January announcement, the new campaign sees the company tapping deeper into the Hollywood star’s celebrity selling power. After its premiere on Friday, the ad will also air multiple times on NBC during the Olympic games. The timing is also appropriate for Johnson — the blockbuster action star will be featured in the opening ceremony itself and his latest film, Walt Disney Pictures’ Jungle Cruise, opens in wide release on July 30. Johnson will also play an active role in promoting the ZOA ad on social media, Pengue said.
“It’s very differentiated from a lot of the energy content that we’ve seen,” said Danny Stepper, CEO of L.A Libations, who got involved with the brand pre-launch and brought Molson in for ZOA. “It’s not about the typical energy stuff like Motocross, it’s more about energy for the rest of us, the everyday warrior type thing, with regular human beings that need to get through their day. It’s very positive, very bright, very inspirational.”
ZOA was co-founded by Johnson, The Garcia Companies and TGC Management CEO Dany Garcia, fitness coach Dave Rienzi and Juggernaut Capital Partners managing partner John Shulman. The company produces a better-for-you, plant-based energy drink available in five flavors: Original, Super Berry, Wild Orange, Pineapple Coconut and Lemon Lime.
The brand, which rolled out in retail in March, is now available in over 15,000 stores nationwide and has recently added new retail partners including chainwide in Sprouts and a presence in H-E-B, Kroger, CVS, HyVee, Target, Walmart, Speedway and 7-Eleven. Though early reports from retailers said the brand was slow to gain traction among consumers, Pengue and Stepper noted that the brand has since seen a spike in repeat sales and is experiencing rapid velocities.
“The velocities are exceeding all our wildest expectations,” Stepper said. “It’s really great that we can do a national TV spot and have a retailer on every corner in America stock the brand. We’re available via DSD through our partner Molson Coors, and we’re rocking, man. So it’s a good time to use [the ad campaign].”
Just four months into the launch, Stepper said ZOA is already selling at three times its forecasted growing rate. The brand now plans to continue growing its retail footprint throughout the year with product innovation slated to roll out in the near future, Pengue said.
“We’re going to be filling out our mass, grocery and c-store footprint, that’s right in front of us right now,” Pengue said. “But clearly, we’ve got incremental plans. You’ll see more of that at NACS and then you’ll see more coming from ZOA early next year.”