Zevia’s New CEO Bets on Singles to Reignite a Struggling Soda Brand
The zero-sugar pioneer trades multipacks for single-serve to chase an $80M opportunity, but Q3 guidance stumbles on cost.
ZVIA · Earnings Call · 2026-08-05
A Pivot to Singles
On his first earnings call as CEO, Alexandre Ruberti laid out a strategic plan centered on unlocking the single-serve format. “if you want to measure that, nowadays we have a 10% of share and we have a 0 share in singles. And singles opportunity for us, if we keep the same multipack share that we have nowadays, it will be around $80 million” — Alexandre Ruberti, President and Chief Executive Officer · 2026-08-05 This is a fundamental departure from a brand that has built its retail footprint on multipacks. The singles platform becomes the top value-creation priority, with the company aiming for a full national rollout tied to a new go-to-market structure beginning in early 2027. It is an acknowledgment that distribution and shelf presence have not translated into the impulse and convenience channel, a long-running gap highlighted in earlier calls. Ruberti also emphasized improving store execution as part of a three-part test: easier to find, easier to buy, easier to choose. The company is evaluating a mix of DSD networks, brokers, and merchandising agencies to support the single-serve push, but execution will take time. The stock has lost over 90% of its value from its 2021 peak, leaving it a micro-cap with a market cap just above $100 million. The recent bounce (+10% in the last 90 days) is a tiny reprieve from a brutal drawdown.Cardi B and the Full Funnel
The brand is simultaneously scaling its marketing engine. The launch of the “Refreshingly Real” campaign with Cardi B produced staggering numbers — nearly 29.5 billion social views and 1.8 billion earned media impressions. “we had almost 30 million social video views. We had 1.8 billion in earned media impressions” — Alexandre Ruberti, President and Chief Executive Officer · 2026-08-05 On the call, Ruberti linked the campaign to a full-funnel strategy: awareness, consideration, and a new co-created product expected in January. Cardi B is not just a spokesperson but a catalyst for household penetration, which remains in single digits for the category. Management insists the campaign is within planned budgets, with marketing spend up modestly as a percentage of revenue. The real test, however, is conversion — the company still expects a negative EBITDA quarter in Q3 as it absorbs the costs of the rollout and higher aluminum/fuel expenses.Financial Discipline Under Pressure
The financial trajectory is improving from a low base. Gross margin stands at 48.4% in the latest reported quarter, up from 42% in 2020, though down slightly year-over-year due to input costs. Revenue for the quarter rose 1.1% to $45 million, with first-half growth of 10.4% despite the tea discontinuation. The company swung to positive adjusted EBITDA of $0.5 million in Q2, a marked improvement from a year ago. Yet guidance for Q3 implies a loss of $3 million to $3.5 million, driven by aluminum costs, promotional spend, and diesel. Chief Financial Officer Girish Satya noted: “we're in the really early days of our marketing and innovation initiatives” — Girish Satya, Chief Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer · 2026-08-05 and outlined an additional $3–5 million in cost savings to arrive in Q1 2027. The stock remains a shadow of its former self — down over 90% from its 2021 peak, with a recent 28% drawdown from the July high. The market is pricing in uncertainty, but the singles opportunity is a genuine line of sight for growth that did not exist a year ago. As the new CEO said:This one is the main opportunity for us.