BioSteel is Spending Millions in Marketing, But is it Enough?

from the Joshua Schall Audio Experience · host Joshua Schall

In a beverage category controlled firmly by Gatorade for decades, will the massive marketing push of BioSteel be enough to make a material impact? With CBD regulation being stalled for the last few years in the U.S. market, the original strategic plan of Canopy Growth acquiring sports nutrition brand BioSteel to commercialize cannabis-focused supplements was also on the back burner. That being said, the companies decided to pivot and focus on bringing “the best kept secret in professional sports” hydration product to the mainstream consumer by offering it in packaged beverage form. Why a pivot to this magnitude could even have a chance to be successful is because Canopy Growth just so happens to be minority-owned (38.6%) by the $9 billion alcoholic beverage portfolio Constellation Brands. BioSteel has been leveraging Constellation's beer distribution network throughout the last few months to launch its sports drink beverage in the U.S. market. This has helped them quickly capture market share by landing large retail accounts like CVS, Walmart, and QuikTrip. While it's still very early days, BioSteel is already the 7th biggest sports drink brand according to IRI. Though this is hardly clean data, Canopy Growth reported growth of “Other CPG Revenue” (which I assume is mostly BioSteel) had substantially grew in the last quarter to 149%. What’s driving this recent growth? BioSteel has massively increased its partnerships with high-profile sports teams/leagues and star athletes. Question remains though if it's enough to win market share from PepsiCo owned Gatorade or Coca-Cola owned BODYARMOR.  Link to Canopy Growth & BioSteel M&A Content (10/2/19) = https://youtu.be/2UsZDEgCYfE

What this episode covers

In a beverage category controlled firmly by Gatorade for decades, will the massive marketing push of BioSteel be enough to make a material impact? With CBD regulation being stalled for the last few years in the U.S. market, the original strategic plan of Canopy Growth acquiring sports nutrition brand BioSteel to commercialize cannabis-focused supplements was also on the back burner. That being said, the companies decided to pivot and focus on bringing “the best kept secret in professional sports” hydration product to the mainstream consumer by offering it in packaged beverage form. Why a pivot to this magnitude could even have a chance to be successful is because Canopy Growth just so happens to be minority-owned (38.6%) by the $9 billion alcoholic beverage portfolio Constellation Brands. BioSteel has been leveraging Constellation's beer distribution network throughout the last few months to launch its sports drink beverage in the U.S. market. This has helped them quickly capture market share by landing large retail accounts like CVS, Walmart, and QuikTrip. While it's still very early days, BioSteel is already the 7th biggest sports drink brand according to IRI. Though this is hardly clean data, Canopy Growth reported growth of “Other CPG Revenue” (which I assume is mostly BioSteel) had substantially grew in the last quarter to 149%. What’s driving this recent growth? BioSteel has massively increased its partnerships with high-profile sports teams/leagues and star athletes. Question remains though if it's enough to win market share from PepsiCo owned Gatorade or Coca-Cola owned BODYARMOR. Link to Canopy Growth & BioSteel M&A Content (10/2/19) = https://youtu.be/2UsZDEgCYfE