• ☠️ Liquid Death Cuts U.K.
• 🚛 A Roundup Of Distribution Gains
• 🦾 Ball Corp.'s Bicoastal Growth
• ⚔️ The Trade War's Weight On Spirits
• ⭐ Reviews? We Got Em’ 
• 🤔 How Will Tariffs Impact CPG?

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The lines separating coffee and energy drinks have been getting blurrier every year, but is there opportunity for a couple of upstart independents on either side to join forces?

That theory seems to be up for testing, with news that Los Angeles-based UPTIME Energy has acquired nitro cold brew coffee specialists RISE Brewing Co. for an undisclosed fee. Housed under a single combined unit, the two brands will share sales, marketing, finance and operations teams that serve over 40,000 points of distribution across the country.

So, is the one-two punch of coffee and energy drinks really “uniquely positioned to challenge the multinationals that dominate our categories,” as promised by UPTIME’s chairman Stephen Choi, leader of the combined entity? 

• RISE co-founder Grant Gyesky backed the notion, citing the strength of shared resources and an ability to address each other’s weaknesses.
• For RISE, that’s convenience retail; its answer is RISE Shaker, an indulgent dairy-free blended coffee drink in 13.7 oz. glass bottles, designed specifically for c-stores (though it will first debut at Whole Foods on March 1). 
• The coffee brand will be plugged into UPTIME’s network of DSD partners, but Gyesky confirmed all current RISE distributors are staying onboard.  

Stepping further back, UPTIME’s acquisition of RISE fits with a pattern we’ve seen over the past 12 months during which, aside from a few big transactions, it’s been mostly smaller, more opportunistic mid-sized deals from operators that align on some pretty basic synergies, like manufacturing or distribution. 

As noted in the most recent investment report from BevNET data partner FABID, the largest deal of Q4 2024 was just $20M – the lowest quarterly maximum recorded since 2019. In this economic climate, even for a decade-old brand like RISE, which raised $28 million in 2021 and 2022 over the span of three separate rounds, the margin for error remains razor thin.

Both brands have punched above their weight for years, but amidst spiraling costs to stay in the game, each has seen growth stall – though they’ve retained a healthy share in their respective categories. Excuse the irony, but joining forces could provide the jolt of energy each brand seems to be looking for.

For more details on the deal and a first look at RISE Shaker, read the full story on BevNET.

Liquid Death is pulling back from the U.K. and “temporarily pausing” international market expansion plans as its overseas sales performance failed to meet expectations.

• The canned water maker told U.K. publication The Grocer that its shift from Austrian to U.S. production has left the business without production capabilities beyond North America.
• The brand’s U.K.-based international markets managing director Ben Dando announced his departure on LinkedIn last month.

🫗 Liquid Death launched in the U.K. in spring 2023, but it has been unable to replicate the rapid sales growth it has seen in the U.S. NielsenIQ data indicates that U.K. retail sales were just £2 million in the 52-weeks ending September 7, 2024.

• That’s certainly a far cry from the combined $250.9 million that Circana reports the brand pulled in across its sparkling, still and tea lines for MULO and c-store in the 52-weeks ending December 29, 2024.

Casey’s convenience stores are giving 13 new emerging CPG brands from its Innovation Summit a chance at full scale distribution across its stores. Check out who made the list and catch up on other big distribution moves from across the beverage business in our latest roundup on BevNET.

Can manufacturing giant Ball Corporation is getting even bigger on both coasts with the $160 million acquisition of Florida Can Manufacturing and plans to build a new dual-line can facility in Oregon.

• Florida Can Manufacturing owns a more than 800,000 sq. ft. production facility in Winter Haven, Fla., and produces products for Coca-Cola.
• The new, planned Oregon plant follows facility closures in Phoenix, Az., St. Paul, Minn. and Wallkill, N.Y.

Insiders can learn more about Ball’s expansion and latest earnings results on BevNET.

Real or just political theatre, the threat of tariffs are still to blame for pessimistic growth outlooks from the spirits industry’s biggest players. Despite taking steps to deal with the potential impact, the possibility of tariffs are weighing on Diageo’s recovery, the group said in its Tuesday earnings release.

🥃 If tariffs still come to pass with Canada and Mexico, Diageo will be in a tighter spot than its competitors: Nearly half (45%) of the group’s U.S. sales come from Mexico and Canada, and of a potential $200 million loss from tariffs, 85% would be from tequila.

✂️ Meanwhile, Pernod Ricard cut its sales forecast on Thursday to single-digit declines, as tariffs – particularly Chinese duties on cognac – are weighing on the spirits group.

Insiders can read more on how Diageo is preparing and what the group had to say about sale rumors.

This week at BevNET we rounded up sparkling prebiotic sodas from Fruga and Live, functional mocktails from Jas, and Barbarian Water, the first product that we’ve ever seen to feature bovine blood powder.

Then, we chronicled our thoughts with each swig, highlighting aspects of the brand, liquid and product positioning that stood out and things the company could consider for next time. 

🆓 Check out this week’s review roundup on BevNET.

Despite the 30-day pause on Canadian and Mexican tariffs, the CPG industry is still preparing for the impact of a potential trade war. The announced 25% import taxes on goods from our neighbors to the north and south have many brands and manufacturers preparing for the worst. 

🤝 The CPG Week team is joined by BevNET Editor-in-Chief Jeff Klineman to discuss what to expect if and when tariffs arrive and the best practices for securing supply chains and preparing for cost increases in the meantime. 

🍽️ Plus, listen to Jeff’s plans to practice gluttony this coming Super Bowl Sunday (spoiler alert: it includes indulging in the two participating teams’ hometown dishes - maybe at once).

🆓 Click here to listen to this week’s episode. Also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.