BodyArmor Superdrink is a sports drink company founded in the year 2011 with the aim of providing all-natural flavors and complete hydration to people. In this article, we will see about ‘Is BodyArmor A Coke Product?’.
Is BodyArmor A Coke Product?
BodyArmor Superdrink is a sports drink company founded in the year 2011 with the aim of providing all-natural flavors and complete hydration to people. In this article, we will see about ‘Is BodyArmor A Coke Product?’.Although the company and its products were not founded by Coca-Cola, in August 2018, the Coca-Cola Company purchased a minor stake at BodyArmor, making them the second-biggest stakeholder of the company only after Mike Repole, the founder of BodyArmor, himself. This deal also made Coca-Cola the parent company of BodyArmor.
About BodyArmor Superdrink
The company was founded by Mike Repole and Lance Collins in the year 2011 with the aim of providing healthier hydration alternatives than regular energy drinks. The company has divided its products into three categories namely Sports Drinks, Lyte Sports Drink, and Edge. The company also sells its own water.
BodyArmor Sports Drink
This category consists of drinks with antioxidants and protein-packed electrolytes and has 11 flavors as of now, namely gold berry, watermelon strawberry, pineapple coconut, etc.
BodyArmor Lyte Sports Drink
These drinks are sugar-free and low calorie, with ranging flavors from Berry Punch to Coconut, etc.
BodyArmor Edge
These are caffeinated drinks that provide 100mg of caffeine in each bottle with 1000mg of electrolytes which are currently available in four different flavors – berry blitz, tropical chaos, power punch, and orange frenzy.
The Coca-Cola purchase
Coca-Cola purchased a share in the brand with the aim of giving its rival Pepsi Co.’s drink Gatorade a competition. BodyArmor’s net worth increased drastically post the purchase. While Coca-Cola is and still remains the minor stakeholder of BodyArmor, the founder and owner Mike Repole and his team are still the ones behind the company’s production and other core work.
Jim Dinkins, the then President of Coca-Cola North America, in a press release labeled BodyArmor as “one of the fastest-growing beverage trademarks in America” and that it will “prove to be a strong offering to our [Coca-Cola’s] already powerful hydration portfolio.” This could refer to the extraordinary flavors of the drinks with the nonusage of artificial flavors and sweeteners.
In the same press release, the founder and chairman of BodyArmor, Mike Repole, mentioned his excitement about the deal with Coca-Cola and appreciated their track record of growing start-up brands such as BodyArmor while still letting them be independent and follow the aim with which the products were launched.
Partnership with Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant, the well-known basketball player, had shown interest in the company in the year 2013 and purchased 10% equity of the brand fr somewhere between $5 million to $6 million. In 2018, after the investment by Coca-Cola, his share in the brand drastically increased to cost about $200 million. He also acted as the spokesperson for the company for several months. After his unfortunate death, the equity was passed on to his wife, Vannessa Bryant.
Other Partnerships
The brand has collaborated and partnered with various sports leagues and competitions as well as had sports players and celebrities endorse their brand. They currently have 23 sportspersons partnering with them from various sports fields such as golf, basketball, soccer, etc. The list of the current partners are as follows –
- James Harden – Known as one of the best players of basketball.
- Ja Morant –
- Donovan Mitchell
- Sabrina Ionescu
- Trae Young
- Kemba Walker
- Sylar Diggins-Smith
- Diana Taurasi
- Mookie Betts
- Mike Trout
- Ronald Acuna Jr.
- Anthony Rizzo
- Jack Flaherty
- Kyler Murray
- Christian McCaffrey
- Baker Mayfield
- Bobby Wagner
- Megan Rapinoe
- Carlos Vela
- Naomi Osaka
- Dustin Johnson
- Ryan Blaney
- Dylan Larkin
The brand is also the official sports drink of UFC, US Open, and Major League Soccer.
Carrie Underwood, a very prominent figure in the country music genre and music in general, has also partnered with BodyArmor to promote a healthy lifestyle and hydration alongside her fitness brand Calia by Carrie.
Competitions
The current and the biggest competition of BodyArmor in the market is Gatorade by Pepsi Co., which was also a reason behind the Coca-Cola stake purchase. With Gatorade taking about 70% of the sports drink market, BodyArmor still has a long way to go to reach the top.
There are many attempts made by the people at BodyArmor to improve on the product and its marketing to reach a bigger and loyal audience. Mike Repole also stated in a recent interview that by 2025, the company would either go bankrupt or emerge as the No. 1 Sports Drink Company in the world. This could be a small insider look at the number of risks being taken by the brand to get to the No. 1 status.
Pepsi Co. and Gatorade have acknowledged the efforts of BodyArmor in a statement by O’Brien, the senior Vice President of Gatorade, stating that one “respond like an athlete” to any challenges put forth onto them, referring to the addition of zero-calorie drinks in the BodyArmor collection.
Apart from this rivalry, BodyArmor also has to compete with its own apparent company’s brand, Powerade, which holds about the 20% of the sports drink market.
Conclusion
Now we have learnt ‘Is BodyArmor A Coke Product?’, After the purchase by Coca-Cola, BodyArmor is partially owned by the brand as well as owned and run by its founder Mike Repole. Apart from that, Vannesa Bryant also owns 10% of the company equity that was purchased by Kobe Bryant in the year 2013. This deal between Coca-Cola and BodyArmor could lead to benefit for both of these companies as BodyArmor brings about various flavors and ingredients that are new to the market, and Coca-Cola’s brand influence is enough to get people to buy it. BodyArmor could soon be a common household name in the sports drink market.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is BodyArmor managed by Coca-Cola?
While Coca-Cola does have equity in the company, the management of the brand is done by Mike Repole and his as a part of his agreement to Coca-Cola.
- Does Kobe still own BodyArmor?
After the demise of the Basketball superstar, the equity of the company has now been given to Vanessa Bryant, who is also a part of the Board of Directors.
- Who is the CEO of BodyArmor?
The current CEO of BodyArmor is Nick Mouton.
