This year’s National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) show in Chicago was like a coming out party for the revamped Celsius Holdings, the energy drink company that has grown rapidly through acquisition in 2025.
Celsius bought better-for-you energy drink brand Alani Nu LLC in April for $1.8 billion, and in September struck a deal with PepsiCo expanding distribution partnership with the soft drink giant and acquiring its Rockstar Energy Drink brand.
“It’s one of the best portfolios at the show,” said CEO John Fieldly.
Building a new energy
The overhaul is still in the works with the restructuring of teams internally, specifically in the sales teams and key accounts teams, Fieldly said.
Celsius also is moving the majority of its distribution to PepsiCo at the beginning of December as part of the Rockstar deal.
The company also built out its digital capabilities team to drive growth through retailers and other services like 7-Eleven and Instacart that have their own mobile apps, Fieldly said.
The company’s Celsius line of energy drinks has wide distribution across retail outlets, according to Celsius President and Chief Operating Officer Eric Hanson, who joined the company in March from PepsiCo.
Hanson said Alani Nu has a lot of room for distribution growth, most of which will take place in c-stores and large format stores like Costco. Alani Nu is currently available in roughly 30-40% of the c-stores where Celsius distributes, Hanson said.
“The biggest unlock that I think we have – for Celsius as well – is food service,” he said, noting that on-premise restaurants at workplaces, hospitals and universities offer big opportunities for the company.
New flavors, new markets
That pairing of energy drinks with meals – historically considered off-brand for brands like Red Bull and Monster – are made possible by new flavor profiles, Fieldly said.
“The flavor technology has just really evolved over the years, and now you’re able to create Peach Vibes and a variety of different unique flavors that are great,” he said. “We have a Cherry Cola with Celsius. You have a Sherbet Swirl with Alani Nu. It’s just unique.”
The new flavor profiles are enabling consumers to see them not as an energy drink but just as any other beverage, Fieldly explained.
The strategy of attracting a new generation of consumers is working, said Hanson. He explained in 2020 Celsius had $150 million in retail sales. That number has grown to $5 billion in 2025 and a projected $6 billion next year.
“We’ve been integrating and working and so we’re going to take the momentum we have and build that through 2026 then 2027 and beyond,” Hanson said. “We’ll see if there’s more to add on to, but right now it’s going to be really focused on the momentum we have, finishing integration and making sure we’ve got the growth drivers.”
Growing the portfolio
Hanson said that with PepsiCo’s distribution capabilities in place and a broad portfolio that targets a range of demographics, Celsius is set for growth.
“Now we’ve got the Rockstar brand that is more on the core energy side. We’ve got Celsius and Alani Nu, which are more modern energy and more female forward,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of tools to work with to address consumer needs, to address our customers needs, as an important traffic driver.”
Celsius is already available in several markets outside the US, with a strong presence in Sweden and Finland for more than a decade and a recent launch into a handful of European markets. The international footprint positions the company for expansion of its newer brands.
“We’ve got some momentum we’re building with the Celsius brand internationally,” he said. “Alani Nu is largely not outside the US, but I think over time, we’ll look at opportunities for Alani internationally.”
