Posts tagged with "BodyArmor"

Above, Tom Brady boosts his new brand to his 14.8 million followers on Instagram. (Photo source: @tombrady_Instagram)

Tom Brady takes his fitness, apparel brands to Nobull

February 5, 2024

On Tuesday, January 30, retired football phenom Tom Brady announced via social media that his supplement brand, TB12 (a nod to his initials and jersey number as a New England Patriots quarterback), and apparel brand Brady were merging under the Nobull umbrella—“forming one complete wellness company,” reports Retail Dive.

Cross-training equipment company Nobull was founded in 2015 by ex-Reebok executives Marcus Wilson and Michael Schaeffer.

Six months ago, the private equity arm of serial entrepreneur Mike Repole’s family investment office took a majority stake in Nobull. Repole is best known for founding beverage brands BodyArmor, Energy Brands, and Glaceau’s Vitaminwater and Smartwater.

In a post on Instagram, Brady noted that the move to Nobull “wouldn’t be possible without Mike Repole, a great friend of mine. whom I have spent the past few years with talking about my own journey. We’ve pushed each other to get better every day and now it’s time to bring this attitude to the world.”

In October 2023, New England sports journalist Dale Arnold reported on X that sources told him that Brady and his business partner Alex Guerrero had split; their TB12 supplement and fitness company “seems to be closing all facilities and there may be a new business model for Brady.”

By then, several Boston publications had noted the closure of Brady’s TB12 stores in the area, and Guerrero had already announced a new company, TBRx or “total body recovery.”

Research contact: @RetailDive

Above, the Fairlife product line. (Photo source: Coca-Cola)

Coca-Cola to build $650M Fairlife plant in New York State

May 23, 2023

Coca-Cola has selected New York State as its “preferred location” for a new Fairlife production facility costing an estimated $650 million, Governor Kathy Hochul (D) has announced, reports Food Dive.

The 745,000-square-foot facility—to be located in Webster, New York, a suburb of Rochester—is expected to create up to 250 new jobs. Coca-Cola expects to break ground on the project this fall and to have the facility operational by the fourth quarter of 2025. It will be the largest dairy processing plant in the Northeast. 

Fairlife has been a big winner for Coca-Cola recently as the beverage giant evolves into a “total beverage company” and invests in brands that have a long runway for growth. Last year, Coca-Cola said Fairlife topped $1 billion in annual retail sales for the first time.

While Coca-Cola is best known for brands such as Sprite, Dasani and its namesake soda, the Atlanta-based company has moved aggressively to build out a portfolio that is broader and, in many cases, healthier.

During CEO James Quincey’s tenure, Coca-Cola has purchased or acquired the remaining stakes in brands it didn’t already own—including Fairlife, sparkling water offering Topo Chico, and sports drink line BodyArmor.

Coca-Cola acquired the remaining stake of Fairlife, which makes ultra-filtered milk and dairy products, from its joint venture partner Select Milk Producers, a dairy cooperative, in 2020. Coca-Cola previously owned a 42.5% minority stake. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The ultra-filtered milk process removes the lactose and much of the sugar, and leaves behind more of the protein and calcium.

Fairlife, which launched in 2012, started with a high-protein milkshake aimed at athletes and has since expanded into other value-added dairy products, including its popular milk and ice cream.

The brand has grown nearly 30% year to date and currently a quarter of all U.S. households purchase a Fairlife product, Coca-Cola said, citing Nielsen data.

The New York plant would be Fairlife’s third in the United States. Coca-Cola has facilities in Coopersville, Michigan, and Goodyear, Arizona.

“Consumer demand for Fairlife products is at an all-time high, and a new production facility will allow us to significantly increase capacity and deliver fairlife to even more households across the country,” Tim Doelman,Fairlife’s CEO, said in a statement.

He added that as the brand continues its expansion in the Northeast, the New York location’s proximity and access to dairy farmers “make it an excellent location to support our next phase of growth.”

Coca-Cola is the latest large CPG company to build a new plant or expand an existing facility to prepare for an increase in sales of a product. Mondelēz International, Nestlé, J.M. Smucker, and Post Holdings are among the food and beverage to make multi-million-dollar announcements in recent years.

Research contact: @FoodDive