Coca-Cola is giving BodyArmor a major makeover in hopes of jump-starting sales

When Coca-Cola fully took control of BodyArmor in 2021 in a $5.6 billion deal, the company announced it had a goal of it “becoming the #1 global sports drink” and toppling PepsiCo’s Gatorade from its top-selling position.

When Coca-Cola fully took control of BodyArmor in 2021 in a $5.6 billion deal, the company had the goal of it “becoming the #1 global sports drink,” toppling PepsiCo’s Gatorade from its top-selling position. About four years later, BodyArmor remains stuck behind rival Gatorade and sister brand Powerade. The drink is beset with several problems, including more competition, a muddled identity and stagnating sales that forced its parent company to take a $760 million write-down of the brand last April. BodyArmor is a “little lost in the middle,” said Howard Telford, head of soft drinks for research firm Euromonitor. “It wouldn’t surprise me if it hadn’t met expectations because it was quite a big purchase at the time.” On Thursday, BodyArmor announced a “rebirth” of itself, with refreshed packaging, a tweaked logo and its largest-ever advertising campaign. The splashy ads feature athletes like NFL player Joe Burrow and WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu and will make its debut this weekend during the NHL playoffs. “One of our biggest barriers right now is just not a lot of people know about who we are and what we’re about,” Tom Gargiulo, BodyAmor’s chief marketing officer, told CNN. “We think there’s a massive opportunity ahead of us in terms of really exploding this brand’s growth.” Launched in 2011, BodyArmor positioned itself as a healthier alternative to other sports drinks, like Gatorade. It used coconut water, for example, and touted its use of natural flavors and sweeteners.