the Joshua Schall Audio Experience

When you think about PepsiCo…your brain either beelines to carbonated soft drinks and their flagship Pepsi brand or packaged foods and their significant market share across salty snack categories. But how about what I like to call the “three-headed categorical monster” of active nutrition? Or maybe it’s time to expand my phrase slightly…especially after PepsiCo CEO stated last week within its thir...

Over the past several days, famous YouTube creators like Casey Neistat and MrBeast used words like “frightening” or “scary” to describe the various implications surrounding the new artificial intelligence (AI) video creation app Sora that quickly rose to the top of the U.S. Apple App Store charts. And although these popular YouTubers (influencers) are mostly concerned about how the platform genera...

We have a regulatory agency under the Department of the Interior that handles the conservation of federal land for all the tree-huggers. And there’s another regulatory agency under that same government department designating nationally significant historic landmarks for all the history buffs. But what about a national list of culturally significant business properties for all of us business nerds?...

When hear the term bootlegging, what jumps into your mind? Maybe names like Al Capone, Bill McCoy, “Lucky” Luciano, and George Remus…that were famously associated with the Prohibition era. Or maybe you think about the role moonshine played in American History. But what about the infamous 5-Hour Energy bootlegging case from a decade ago? Oh…you hadn’t heard of arguably the craziest crime story invo...

Strategic licensing has been a major growth unlock for MyProtein, but hints of an upcoming partnership could take “the world’s largest online sports nutrition brand” to a whole other level! THG (aka the company formerly known as The Hut Group) recently updated the public markets by releasing its 2025 H1 interim results. I’ll be utilizing that financial information, along with notes I took listenin...

Heroes get remembered, but legendary stories involving Anheuser-Busch and Major League Baseball never die. During an era where Coors Field exists in Denver, Colorado…the 1950s story involving August “Gussie” Busch Jr., Anheuser-Busch beer brands, and Major League Baseball almost doesn’t feel real. Less than two months after buying the St. Louis Cardinals in 1953, August “Gussie” Busch Jr. announce...

Melt Away Fat! Never Diet Again!! The promises of “magic pills” that will lead to safe, effortless weight loss are everywhere. But while these mythical weight loss products may never exist…the FDA is getting ready to approve something extremely close. The news has been nearly impossible to miss…with a tidal wave of interest in medications that are revolutionizing an innovative approach to weight l...

The “most human” commercials (aka organic social content) can also be the most effective within today’s world of increased advertising exposure. Throughout the current decade, various beverage brands have experienced their share of viral organic social content…but none arguably more impactful than the “Ocean Spray Vibin” video from 2021. The homemade lip-syncing video was real, raw, human, and vul...

It became “a way of life” built around the simple idea of replacing meals with diet shakes…but can SlimFast stay relevant in an era when consumers are fixated with another weight loss mechanism that promises swift results? Is there a nutritional supplement brand more intertwined with fluctuations inherent to the weight management category than SlimFast? Even decades before SlimFast launched, the p...

Observable phenomena that precede changes in larger markets are found everywhere…hence why I believe a trio of trending nutraceutical ingredients could be a powerful leading indicator for the next generation of energy drinks. And I want to set the stage by providing my basic mental model surrounding the market evolution of energy drinks. Firstly, energy drinks are no longer just sugar-filled flavo...

In 2007, when The Coca-Cola Company acquired the enhanced water portfolio Glaceau for $4.1 billion…all the attention was focused on its flagship brand Vitaminwater. Heck…even 50 Cent reportedly made around $100 million from the M&A transaction, as the rapper structured his deal around equity rather than traditional endorsement fees. But significant change has happened since…from 50 Cent filing...

At least to me, it seems everywhere you turn…iron-clad sports nutrition brands of the past are now showing huge cracks in their armor. So then, why does the industry appear shocked by the recent Iovate Health Sciences International news? For those that haven’t already read the headlines, (last week) Iovate Health Sciences International filed voluntary petitions for protection under Chapter 15 of t...

With its original investment thesis proven accurate, Nutrabolt has decided to expand its strategic partnership with Bloom Nutrition. So, this content will provide you with the legitimate “insider” deep dive insights needed to really understand the nuance behind why Nutrabolt and Bloom Nutrition both decided to expand their strategic partnership, what it unlocks for Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP), and how...

What could the Major League Baseball “Pittsburgh drug trials” have in common with CELSIUS energy drinks 40 years later? While relatively unknown compared to the “BALCO performance enhancing substances” scandal, the first major drug punishments handed out across Major League Baseball involved players using cocaine in their respective clubhouses. In fact, during the late-1970s and early-1980s, drug...

Ain’t no party like a Beatbox party, cause a Beatbox party don’t stop…except when the production lines get foreclosed on! But to better understand that last statement, it requires a brief four-year “rise and fall” history lesson surrounding the small Canadian public company named Flow Beverage Corporation. In mid-2021, a reverse takeover transaction was completed on the premium water company, and...

Can we talk about how Red Bull suddenly stopped overlooking the fitness crowd? It was more than a decade ago when Bang Energy popularized performance energy drinks, which was instrumental in broadening the appeal of energy drinks. And even if they won’t ever admit it publicly, large energy drinks incumbents like Red Bull and Monster Energy both incumbents have become increasingly worried about bra...

Did Celsius Holdings and PepsiCo just pull-off the biggest “trade” the U.S. energy drinks market has seen over the past decade? I instantly felt like the beverage industry version of ESPN analyst Adam Schefter reporting on an NFL trade when I started to read the press release titled “Celsius Holdings and PepsiCo Strengthen Long-Term Strategic Partnership.” Essentially, CELSIUS acquired the Rocksta...

In 2015, the most lucrative beverage industry deal ended up happening between Monster Beverage and The Coca-Cola Company. But what doesn’t get talked about enough is how that long-term strategic partnership caused another beverage giant to experience the categorical version of the movie “50 First Dates.” And that’s because before Coca-Cola became the exclusive global distribution partner of Monste...

I bet Nestle wishes it could go back and experience that “Great Shutdown” fueled demand spike again (because it went by too fast), but allowing some VMS brands to leave the nest could be its next step towards finding new growth! Within the prepared remarks section, Nestle leadership noted during the first-half 2025 earnings call that it had launched a review of its underperforming vitamins, minera...

By now, you’ve undoubtedly heard the business news that Keurig Dr Pepper entered into a definitive agreement to acquire JDE Peet's worldwide portfolio of beloved coffee brands. Under the terms of the agreement, KDP will purchase all outstanding ordinary shares of JDE Peet's…valuing the all-cash transaction at approximately $18.3 billion. And you might be thinking, “wow I didn’t realize KDP...

Olipop. Poppi. Simply Pop. Culture Pop. I imagine consumers confuse these brands…especially when they mostly look the same and talk the same. But instead of providing you with a dissertation on the effects of categorical amalgamation…I really wanted to highlight how me and my fellow Midwesterners (especially from Ohio) have been right all along! It’s “POP” not “SODA.” Though, as the beverage categ...

Decades later…its massive influence on the U.S. food system is still being felt. So, why should we believe the tobacco industry won’t be involved somehow again as more consumers move closer towards this four-way intersection of taste, convenience, nutrition, and functionality? Through the direct ownership of U.S. food companies between the 1980s and early-2000s, tobacco companies greatly impacted...

No longer simply known as that chalky powder gym bros take for bigger muscles…creatine is currently undergoing a significant metamorphosis. Though, what happens during this final stage could forever define the creatine market! While creatine was first discovered in muscle tissue in 1832, it took another 160 years before a new era of sports nutrition was created from the pivotal creatine supplement...

When the creator and host of the number one listened to podcast amongst women globally decided to launch a hydration beverage…it sparked tons of both positive and negative commentary from industry pundits. But could Alex Cooper be the sports drinks category version of Alanu Nu creator Katy Hearn…that was a major catalyst for broadening the appeal of energy drinks to female consumers? Well…it’s bee...

Will FitLife Brands be able to show the “one man’s trash” proverb is an effective growth strategy within the supplement industry? But for anyone new to these quarterly content pieces, FitLife Brands sells more than 250 SKUs across 13 supplement brands…each with a slightly different product portfolio and sales channel strategy. In total, the FitLife Brands portfolio is sold through more than 20K re...