Last week, I was a panelist for a National Beer Wholesalers Association webinar about non-alcoholic beverages. As you know, there’s tremendous crossover between the alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage sectors. Each wants to supplement its distribution network with products from the other, especially as sales volumes decline for massive legacy categories such as light lagers and colas.
The discussion began with a chart depicting the entire US packaged beverage landscape at retail by category market share. I included the chart on page 7 with permission from...
BodyArmor Stabilizing, Coke CEO Says. Brand Responds to Changing Category.
PepsiCo Addresses Question of US Bottler Refranchising Amid Margin Woes.
The CEO’s of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo painted a rosier than expected picture of consumer strength and sentiment in the US during their companies’ recent fourth-quarter earnings reports. That came despite...
Introduction Comes as BodyArmor Adds Zero Sugar Option
January 31, 2024
Ghost, the sports nutrition company that partnered with Anheuser-Busch for a canned energy drink, has now launched an expansion into bottled hydration. Ghost Hydration, launched officially on Monday, is intended to be...
Plus, Subscriber Bonus: Transcript of Future Smarts Influencer Economy Panel.
Red Bull topped a list of non-alcoholic beverage brands that reaped the highest return on investment on influencer marketing in 2023. That’s according to CreatorIQ, which helps brands track and manage influencer marketing programs. The firm developed a proprietary metric called Earned Media Value (EMV) to benchmark and evaluate the effectiveness of influencer campaigns in engaging consumers. Red Bull’s
Buffalo Rock Pepsi and Coke Consolidated Plan for Return to Pricing, Volume Normalcy
January 18, 2024
During Beverage Digest’s recent Future Smarts conference in New York, Editor & Publisher Duane Stanford conducted on-stage interviews with two of the largest independent PepsiCo and Coca-Cola bottlers in the US, Matthew Dent and Dave Katz. Below are key takeaways from those discussions.
Matthew Dent President & CEO Buffalo Rock
PRICING GROWTH OUTLOOK. “There's going to have to be a study around the effect on elasticities during the pandemic and what that did for our products,” Dent said, adding that price elasticities are
As Pricing Growth Now Decelerates, Private Label Pressure Wanes.
December 19, 2023
Private label carbonated soft drink volume jumped +7.2% at US retail during the first nine months of this year, according to BD data, as persistent grocery inflation pressured price-sensitive consumers. Private label CSDs also gained a half-point of ...
Coke North America President Mann to Keep Volume Pressure in Focus.
PBNA Supply Chain Chief Jordan Talks AI, Automation, Electric Trucks.
Whitmore Intent on Territory Optimization. Watching U.S. Alcohol Sector.
December 19, 2023
Beverage Digest hosted its annual Future Smarts conference in New York on Dec. 11. The day’s lineup of speakers included leaders from three of the largest US beverage companies — Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Keurig Dr Pepper. The executives sat for interviews on stage with Beverage Digest Editor & Publisher Duane Stanford. Below are highlights from those discussions. Takeaways from other sessions will be featured in subsequent issues of this newsletter...