How the Coolest Drink in America Became a $1.4 Billion Mistake #180

This week, Harley and Big Lynch break down how the coolest drink in America became the most expensive bottle of iced tea in business history. The boys trace Snapple from a Brooklyn health food store to a glass-bottle, fact-under-the-cap phenomenon, the private-equity operator who bought 70% for $140 million and walked away with $900 million, and Quaker Oats outbidding Coca-Cola to pay $1.7 billion at the absolute peak. Then comes the fatal mistake, running the Gatorade playbook on a brand that lived in bodegas and corner stores, followed by benching Wendy the Snapple Lady, getting squeamish and torching the Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh deals, and dumping the whole thing to Nelson Peltz's Triarc for $300 million just 27 months later. The brand didn't fail; the owner did. Plus: how the Tylenol poisonings invented the tamper-proof seal, Rao's marinara math, and a Fruitopia-and-Sobe nostalgia spiral. New episodes of Double Dusted Discussion, every Monday!Tell us what you think at r/EpicMealTime, @EpicMealTime on Twitter, or [email protected] sure to subscribe and follow the podcast. New episodes every Monday! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices