Olipop's Founder Rebuffs Beverage Giants' Offers, Eyes Public Listing

Olipop's co-founder Ben Goodwin has turned down offers from beverage giants PepsiCo and Coca-Cola to sell his company. The functional soda brand, which was valued at $1.85 billion after a recent funding round, is instead exploring the possibility of going public or acquiring other consumer brands.

Goodwin, who will be stepping aside as CEO but remaining on as head innovator, said in an interview that he wants to focus on growth and product innovation rather than selling out to a larger company. He noted that Olipop's strong financials and customer base give the company 'optionality' in terms of how it reaches a liquidity event.

Olipop's revenue has scaled rapidly from under $1 million in 2019 to over $400 million, driven by massive growth across major retailers like Target and Walmart. The brand holds a commanding majority share of the functional soda market and continues to challenge legacy beverage giants.