The NFL season may be over, but sports nutrition brand Don’t Quit! is kicking off its 2024 growth plan with the launch of a new Cookies & Cream protein drink flavor designed by investor and Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
Hamlin’s signature flavor arrives eight months after the NFL star, who returned to the field this season after collapsing mid-game from cardiac arrest last year, joined Don’t Quit! as an equity partner last summer.
Cookies & Cream is the first new addition to Don’t Quit!’s line of shakes since the nearly four-year-old brand unveiled a refreshed and simplified product portfolio in March 2023, joining Chocolate and Vanilla flavors on the line. Like the rest of the line, Cookies & Cream contains 33 grams of protein, a blend of 26 vitamins and minerals and is made with no artificial sweeteners, flavors or colors. The drinks are made with milk protein in 12 oz. bottles. The drinks will retail for $4.49 per bottle.
The flavor choice was selected as a personal favorite of Hamlin’s, whom CEO Mark French said was heavily involved in the product development process – tasting variations and providing notes on the drink. Since joining the company last year, Hamlin has also been proactive in promoting Don’t Quit!, including in-person appearances and sampling activations and also conducting a series of interviews with people who have overcome adversity and life-threatening situations to promote the brand’s perseverance ethos.
“He’s been very, very active on the product development and marketing side,” French said of Hamlin. “From a marketing perspective, you’re not just seeing his poster, he is shining the light on local hometown heroes through our Persevering Profile series.”
Cookies & Cream is launching this month online via Walmart.com and in retail at Tops Markets, a key retail chain in Western New York, including the Buffalo area.
According to French, Don’t Quit! is focusing heavily on its chainwide Tops launch to further grow the brand’s profile with Buffalo Bills fans, and has created in-store stands and other promotional items featuring Hamlin for displays and endcaps. The company has also prepared a regional marketing campaign that includes radio, podcasts, digital media and social media components.
Don’t Quit! is currently sold in around 2,000 stores nationwide, including Albertsons, Walmart, Ralph’s, CVS, Safeway and Sprouts, among others and prior to the Tops expansion French said the company has primarily built the brand in the SoCal region where it is partnered with L.A. Libations.
Don’t Quit! was founded in 2020 by fitness icon Jake Steinfeld and in 2023 it merged with energy drink brand X2, rebranding the energy line under the Don’t Quit! banner. In October, the brand announced a partnership with celebrity Peloton instructor Kendall Toole – who had previously invested in X2 – who has helped to promote the energy line, while Hamlin’s involvement has been more focused on the protein offerings.
Looking ahead, French said the brand is getting ready to unveil a refresh of the energy drink products in the coming weeks. As well, the company is preparing for a stronger retail expansion this year along with additional national marketing campaigns in the works.
“We’re definitely right in the middle of a moment, to say the least, in terms of retailer and consumer adoption,” French said.