Nearly Bankrupt to $10B Company: How John Fieldly Saved Celsius
EP 116 of The Logan Bartlett Show: Untold stories from tech's inner circle
Many know Celsius as a top energy drink brand today, but few know the tumultuous journey CEO John Fieldly took to rebuild the brand. In my latest episode, John shared how the company nearly went bankrupt multiple times, lost 50% of its revenue overnight and even got delisted from the Nasdaq.
Despite these challenges, John stepped up to revive the business into the nearly $10B company it is today. We discuss how he shifted focus from weight loss to energy, secured key distribution deals, landed a major partnership with Pepsi, and more.
Click here to view the episode transcript | Watch on Youtube | Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
✉️ Episode Memo
→ Where it all started
Before John Fieldly joined Celsius, the company had secured distribution across major U.S. retailers but struggled to build a loyal consumer base, leading to poor sales rotation. Despite strong execution plans and marketing strategies, the company nearly ran out of cash and was plunged to penny stock status. When John came on board, Celsius was down to just 12 employees and facing significant challenges after being delisted from major retailers like Costco, Walgreens, and CVS.
→ How the Pepsi deal happened
After pivoting their product positioning, Celsius faced significant challenges in rebuilding relationships with distributors due to their reputation as a failed brand. Plus, distributors saw Celsius as a “fitness gym rat” brand that didn’t belong in the beverage category. So, Celsius focused on building awareness, demand, and brand loyalty among the fitness community. Later on, Pepsi had a void in their performance energy portfolio due to a severed partnership with Bang Energy. Pespi knocked on Celsius’s door, and the partnership doubled sales basically overnight.
→ How they created a powerful brand
The goal was to build an iconic brand that inspires people to live better, healthier lives, similar to how brands like Nike, Apple, and Starbucks evoke strong emotional ties with their customers. The team realized that relying solely on product features, like the number of vitamins, wouldn't set them apart in the market. Instead, they focused on making Celsius a symbol of a lifestyle, emphasizing the brand's ability to help people achieve their goals. This shift from a functional to an emotional brand identity became central to their strategy, helping to position Celsius alongside other iconic brands.
Many more details in the full episode.
⭐ Trailer
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