Is Protein Soda the Next Billion $$$ Beverage Category? | Mark French (Don't Quit) & Chris Van Dusen (Solyco Capital) Interview

With protein becoming a kind of "holy water" that instantly anoints any food or beverage with a health halo…it was only a matter of time before it converged with carbonated soft drinks, right? But what if I told you that I’ve been trying to make protein soda a “billion-dollar idea” since 2016? Originally approached by the patent holder almost a decade ago, my attempts at influencing large beverage portfolios went nowhere fast. And it makes sense in hindsight…as within a low household penetration beverage category (like protein drinks), market participants (back then) obviously wanted to bring in new buyers, but the more meaningful solved challenge involved expanding distribution. Even a few years later, within content basically no one watched…I started mentioning how PepsiCo should make “protein dirty sodas” but letting Muscle Milk leverage its carbonated soft drinks flavor IP. But fast forward another few years…protein is winning in most places across the grocery store, accessibility of protein RTD beverages has become almost ubiquitous within the market, and maybe most importantly the “dirty soda” movement exploded thanks to TikTok. And before you think I’m humbly bragging about my place within the protein soda category creation, one that will likely never make the future Wikipedia page…just know that I wholeheartedly believe being right too early is indistinguishable from being wrong! Instead, I provided that quick introductory story to set the stage for our conversation with the CEO of Don’t Quit, Mark French, who’s new protein soda is launching nationwide in Walmart, Albertsons, CVS, and others this month. And alongside this refreshed strategic focus of delivering healthier, clean, great tasting protein in a variety of different formats…we got an insightfully diverse POV on the functional beverage marketplace from Chris Van Dusen, a private equity group Senior Partner involved in delivering capital solutions for late-stage startup and growth companies like Don’t Quit. Follow the Pour Decisions Podcast!Also, an extra special thanks to Cognizin, for not only being the Title Sponsor of The Beverage Forum 2025...but supporting this awesome piece of content!