• ☕ Black Rifle: RTD Reload, More Innovation Coming
• 🫚 Reed’s: Sales (& Losses) Fall in Q2
• 💪🏼 Gamers Gotta Eat: G-Fuel Launches Protein Snacks
• 💊 Huel Goes From A to Z

Veteran-owned, Colorado-based Black Rifle Coffee continued its rapid ascent as a rising omnichannel coffee platform brand last week, reporting a 39% net revenue increase to nearly $92 million in Q2, led by a thriving wholesale (bagged coffee, pods and RTDs) business (+108.6% year-over-year to $50 million). We take a closer look behind the news and numbers: 

RTDs Wobble

• Black Rifle’s RTD unit sales were up 26% sequentially, even as the category has seen unit sales decline almost 8% during the same time period. 
• In response, the company executed a comprehensive review of its “Ready-to-Drink playbook,” the result of which is a “renewed focus on quality of distribution, greater sense of urgency around margin, and the increased profitability, all supported by leadership changes.”
• Co-CEO Tom Davin acknowledged previous issues with co-packers and development of new SKUs as “a drag on profitability this year” but claimed that margins have stabilized. Even so, the business is “prioritizing making money” over growth, which means less innovation and more on-the-ground execution to “drive incremental profitability.” 

Here to Play

• BR’s RTDs are currently in 82,000 stores nationwide, on track to hit its previously stated target of 100,000 by the end of the year.
• The company is moving forward aggressively with the launch of 16 new SKUs, including a 24 oz. canister SKU for ground coffee, 32 oz. cold brew concentrates in multiple flavors, two SKUs of instant coffee, three additional bagged coffees, and six additional pack sizes and flavors of K-cups.
• The new products are expected to increase BR’s shelf-facings at Walmart by 67%. The brand is currently shipping product to a second national retail partner (a “large West Coast retailer,” according to a transcript) and expects to be in all stores by the end of this year. Two new regional grocery partners are also coming online. 
• President Chris Mondzelewski said the company’s criteria for working with retailers is the expectation “that we’re getting the execution that we would expect as a premium brand.”

Go Deeper: A Guide to Black Rifle Coffee’s Active Lawsuits

Canada’s crackdown on caffeine continues: on Friday, the national government issued a recall on all Monster Energy products that contain any amount of caffeine and do not have a bilingual label denoting product attributes in both French and English. 

• Such a labeling omission violates “various” compliance and legal labeling requirements for caffeinated products sold in Maple Leaf land, according to a notice published on the issue. 
• Last month, Canada issued a recall on several other energy drink brands citing similar problems with brands including PRIME, BANG, Ghost, Celsius, G Fuel, Gatorade, Alani Nu, Raze and 5-Hour Energy all falling into the fold. 
• Many of these bevs contained more than the allotted 180 mg of caffeine per can allowed by the Canadians and none of them offered the appropriate dual-language labels.

While it has continued to make headway on reducing its expenses, craft soda maker Reed’s, Inc. saw net sales decline to $10 million (down from $13.7 million in 2022) during its Q2 2023 earnings report last week.

• The company attributed at least part of its lower net sales to “tightened credit terms from select suppliers” that hindered its ability to acquire raw materials, which it said offset net sales by around $1.6 million.
• “We experienced another quarter of strong order volume across our retail network; however, we were unable to fulfill the demand due to lower inventory levels and an inflated rate of short order shipments,” CEO Norman Snyder said in a press release.
• Gross profit was $2.5 million, down from $3.3 million in Q2 2022.
• Despite the lower income, Reed’s made great strides to cut its spending. Delivery and handling costs were reduced by 56% and operating loss improved to $1.7 million, versus a loss of $4.5 million last year.

Energy drink maker G Fuel wants gamers to power up their snack choices. The lifestyle beverage brand, known for its collaborations with IPs like Sonic the Hedgehog and Dragonball Z, is now looking to position itself as a nutrition company for gamers and pop culture lovers with its first food product: G Fuel Protein Puffs.

• The puffs are available in a single White Cheddar flavor and contain 17 grams of protein and just 3 grams of carbohydrates per 1 oz. bag. The snacks are available online direct-to-consumer for $10.99 per 3-pack or up to $35.99 for a 12-pack. 
• In launching Protein Puffs, COO Jack LoParco said G Fuel is well positioned to bring healthy snacking to the gaming community given its long standing authenticity within the space and close knit relationship with consumers.
• G Fuel’s MULO retail sales numbers ($41 million year-over-year through mid-June) don’t include its significant D2C segment or accounts like Hot Topic and Spencer’s Gifts where LoParco said the brand does big business.

Read the story today on BevNET

In this week’s new products lineup, PATH Water joins the Barbiemania craze with a new limited edition bottle, Café Grumpy expands its retail lineup with its first foray into instant coffee and nutpods gears up for fall with the return of its Pumpkin Spice Creamer.

Check out the full gallery on BevNET

As you may have read in our latest issue of BevNET magazine, sweet teas remain as popular as ever, despite the broader movement against added sugars in drinks. Can Oobli, a new line of RTD teas that are marketed as having 75% less sugar than its sweetened competitors, buck that trend? We tried the brand's three 16 oz varieties, including Lemon, Peach, and Mango Yuzu.

Read the full review on BevNET

Adding to its robust portfolio of powdered supplements, snack bars and RTD drinks, nutrition platform Huel is launching of a new Daily A-Z Vitamins beverage, available exclusively (for now) in the UK.  

• The cherry and raspberry flavored sparkling drink touts 26 vitamins and minerals with choline to promote focus and brain function. 
• Daily A-Z Vitamins comes in a 12 oz. can and is available in both caffeine-free and a 100mg caffeinated variety. 
• The bubbly beverage expands on the brand’s move from powdered supplements into beverages where Huel launched a plant protein-based, smoothie Ready-To-Drink product in 2018.

In the era of peak bourbon, how does a brand standout? One company has taken a winemaker style-approach. 

• Craft brand Pinhook breaks with industry standards by treating each set of barrels as a new vintage, combining for the “best whiskey” versus matching a flavor profile from a previous iteration. The results are vintages in the style of wineries versus a manufactured product. 
• In a period of intense trial for whiskey drinkers, the Pinhook team is hoping their strategy will capture a loyal consumer over time. 
• The brand also turned to one of the country's best-known sommeliers, André Mack, to replicate his accessible approach to winemaking in whiskey. The result is Rye & Sons, a $30 rye that is positioned to find whitespace behind the bar and broaden the rye consumer base. 

Read the full story on BevNET

Asian-inspired sparkling water brand Sanzo is chasing the sun through its new collaboration with AAPI-led sunglass brand Covry. The cobranded sunglass collection spotlights three limited-edition colorways inspired by Sanzo’s unique flavors – Lychee (translucent pink), Yuzu (transparent yellow) and Calamansi (transparent green). 

• The shades, available on Covry’s website for $125, are made with lightweight cellulose acetate and feature a Nylon 2-base lens with 100% UV protection. They come with a vegan leather case and a cleaning cloth. 
• “Covry’s Elevated Fit works well for people with low nose bridges, a feature that especially impacts folks in the Asian-American community,” Sanzo founder and CEO Sandro Roco said in a LinkedIn post. 
• The new launch comes as part of the brand’s larger “Destination Flavor” campaign, which also features a collaboration with Nettie Pickleball Co. Together, the brands created a limited edition pickleball paddle inspired by Sanzo’s fruit-forward flavors. The paddle is available via Nettie’s website for $80. 

Go Deeper: Food and Beverage Brands Relishing Pickleball Opportunities

What does Campbell Soup’s planned acquisition of Rao’s owner Sovos Brands suggest about the M&A environment for food and beverage CPG? The hosts discussed the deal and also chatted about several new and innovative products. We also feature an interview with Gregory Lowe and Jason Miller, the founder/CEO and president of sales, respectively, of fast-growing coconut water brand 100 Coconuts.

Listen to the full episode on Taste Radio