Dwayne Johnson had been busy, for months in 2022, with the shooting and promotion of his film Black Adam. But the movie received harsh reviews from critics and did not have a great box office collection. This DC movie was The Rock’s entry into the superhero genre of movies, an obvious step up in his career. After the lukewarm response, he has shifted his focus, the actor now is gearing up to take his brand ZOA energy drinks to new heights and success.
ZOA was started by Dwayne Johnson
The energy drink brand was started by Johnson and his longtime business partners Dany Garcia and Dave Rienzi, and John Shulman of private equity firm Juggernaut Capital Partners. The company did well in its first year, making close to breaking $100 million in retail sales in its first full year in 2022. The drink is now available at about 50,000 distribution points.
The Rock is no novice in business, he has tried his hand at sportswear, liquor, film, and TV production. The actor said that he got into the industry years after consuming energy drinks and never knowing what was in them.
“We thought, you know what? Let’s do it ourselves,” said Johnson. “Fingers crossed, with a lot of hard work and little luck — or a lot of hard work and a lot of luck — we might take some of that $20 billion share that has blessed the energy-drink category.” That is how the company came into being.
Dwayne Johnson’s strategy for ZOA
The energy drink industry is fiercely competitive and Johnson is set to make some bucks on the market. He along with his team began pumping investments into the company to triple its marketing and reach a vast audience.
The main strategy Johnson is adopting is by doubling their marketing budget to make sure they present the brand and create awareness about it among consumers. The can underwent a transformation, its packaging is changed, and is all set to make an appearance at pop-up shops and other marketing means such as influencers, and competitions.
The actor stated,
“We’ll concentrate on our shopper marketing efforts through a variety of channels, including our digital, at home, paid social media and me speaking directly to the consumer, right down the lens,”
The brand has already signed a sponsorship deal with XFL, and will also work closely on the behind-the-scenes and other influencer-related events during the matches.
In an interview with CNBC, The Rock was asked how did he penetrate such a competitive market to which he answered “the faces behind the brand helped in building trust one of them being my own, So far we’ve done Incredibly well”
Johnson plans to use his voice to reach the people and tell them about the drink. This is not the first time celebrity energy drinks have entered the market. More often than not celebrities launch brands, and their brand find success in reaching the audience, using their fame. The Rock is no exception.
The executives are planning to achieve thrice the growth rate, than its current numbers. They also have their sights on international expansion which will bring in a major chunk of sales in 2023. The brand is well funded currently, according to Shulman, “We’re fully funded and we’re very happy with it. All of our founders are investors and we have no need for outside funding.” It also includes a $10 million line of credit from Gerber Finance last February.
Black Adam is streaming on HBO Max.
Source: CNBC
