Black Rifle Coffee Company said distribution gains ensured it was off to a “promising start” to the year, even as revenue dropped for Q1 2025 in its latest earnings report this morning.
The Salt Lake City-based drink brand reported net revenue of $90 million for Q1, down 8.6% – about $8.4 million – from last year. The decline comes after Black Rifle ended last year on a similar down note as Q4 revenue fell by 11.5%.
The decline, which included a 6% drop in wholesale revenue and a 15% dip in direct-to-consumer, was anticipated, said CEO Chris Mondzelewski. He noted that the business has been making an effort to be “more adaptive to navigate an evolving operating environment,” and touted the brand’s growth in food, drug and mass retail accounts (up 21%) as a positive sign.
“With marketing efforts set to accelerate throughout the year, we expect revenue momentum to build and remain confident in the strategy and long-term goals outlined earlier this year,” said CEO Chris Mondzelewski in a statement. “Importantly, we continue to grow market share in every category in which we compete—underscoring the strength of our brand, our products, and our execution.”
“The operational and financial improvements we achieved last year provided us the flexibility to reinvest in the Black Rifle brand and position the business for long-term success,” added CFO Steve Kadenacy. “Distribution gains are a critical enabler of that strategy, and we continue to expand across traditional retail, online platforms, beverage categories, and into new dayparts—driven by momentum in our core coffee offerings and the early success of Black Rifle Energy”
Backed by Keurig Dr Pepper’s distribution network, the Black Rifle Energy line achieved 21% ACV in food, drug, mass and convenience stores – about 12,000 doors – since the line launched in late Q4.
In a call with investors and analysts this morning, the company admitted that it had not anticipated tariffs coming into play at the beginning of the year, and now expect increased costs to impact EBITDA by around $5 million.
Black Rifle said it has implemented a price increase to offset the “significant rise in green coffee prices” – which were rapidly inflating even before tariffs came into effect, as Arabica beans had more than doubled in price over the last year.
But that hasn’t hindered optimism at the company that its RTD and retail performance can lift the business higher and the company suggested an economic slowdown could benefit the growing retail business by leading consumers to drink more coffee at home and less on the road could be a boon.
“Overall, the [coffee] category is doing very well,” said Mondzelewski on the call. “A lot of that is on the back of some of the price increases. But even on a unit standpoint there’s reasonable stabilization in the category.”