At least five now-former Suja Life employees announced their exit from the cold-pressed juice company this week as the company undergoes a strategic reorganization of its marketing department.
In an email, Suja Life CEO Maria Stipp said that the reorganization reflects “the company’s evolution into a dynamic house of brands,” following its acquisition of Vive Organic in 2022 and the launch this month of functional soda brand Slice (a revival of the legacy CSD brand).
“These changes are designed to strengthen Suja’s leadership in the beverage space and accelerate its vision for long-term growth,” Stipp wrote. “By building internal capabilities and leveraging external partnerships, the company aims to unlock new opportunities, expand household penetration, and drive market share across its portfolio.”
The departures include many longtime members of the marketing department, ranging from field team members to director level positions. Among those who confirmed their exits on LinkedIn this week are director of brand projects Casey Woodruff, director of influencer and affiliate marketing Deidre Mares, East Coast manager of experiential marketing and brand partnerships Josh Pins, and Kat Bethmann, the lead for creative and design for both the Suja and Vive Organic brands.
“Today marks my official last day with the Suja Life Marketing Department,” Pins wrote this weekend. “With the recent changes within the department, my role is coming to a close. As I look back on nearly 3.5 years at Suja, I am filled with gratitude for the growth, lessons, and incredible experiences I’ve had along the way.”
Another team member, Kat Sutton, who worked in experiential marketing, updated their profile to show they had ended their four-and-a-half year tenure with Suja Life this month.
The reorganization effort also appears to include the elimination of the company’s field marketing program, according to one former employee.
Juan McCloskey, who had served as a brand ambassador for Suja Life since 2023, wrote that his “time with the company came to an end due to the elimination of the field marketing program.”
Asked how the field marketing program was affected by the new strategy, Stipp said the company has “installed an experiential partnership with Newbridge Marketing Group, and our brand ambassadors have been invited to join them.”
Last week, Suja Life announced it had appointed BarkleyOKRP as its “first ever” creative agency of record and that the firm would “handle all creative work for the brand starting in January 2025”.
It does not seem that all of the personnel changes at Suja Life involve exits. Jessica Stock, who first joined Suja’s field marketing team in 2018, reported on her LinkedIn page Monday that she has moved into a new role as Senior Manager, Brand Engagement for Slice.
The restructuring comes as retail dollar sales of Suja Life’s core portfolio products look to be growing. Circana, a Chicago-based market research firm, reported that U.S. MULO and c-store sales of Suja’s refrigerated juices were up 27.1% to over $117 million in the 52-week period ending December 29, 2024, while vegetable juices rose 3.5% to $61.7 million.
Speaking about the launch of its Slice brand, Suja Life head of sparkling Marisa Hirtzel told BevNET earlier this month that the company would be focusing on growing its sparkling beverage portfolio this year.
The company also looks to be hiring: Suja Life posted a job listing on LinkedIn this weekend seeking a full time senior brand manager.
“This restructuring marks a pivotal step in our journey as a brand-led organization,” Stipp told BevNET. “It ensures we have the right capabilities to meet our ambitious goals for Suja Organic, Vive Organic, and Slice while setting the foundation for transformative growth. While these changes are never easy, we are confident that these steps will fuel our next era of growth.”