filings.toolsItem 1. BUSINESS
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Item 1. BUSINESS
When this report uses the words “the Company”, “we”, “us” and “our”, these words refer to Monster Beverage Corporation and its subsidiaries, unless the context otherwise requires. Based in Corona, California, Monster Beverage Corporation is a holding company and conducts no operating business, except through its consolidated subsidiaries. The Company’s subsidiaries primarily develop and market energy drinks.
Overview
We develop, market, sell and distribute energy drink beverages and concentrates for energy drink beverages, primarily under the following brand names:
| ● Monster Energy® ● Monster Energy Ultra® ● Monster Rehab® ● Monster Energy®Nitro ● Java Monster® ● Punch Monster® ● Juice Monster® ● Monster Hydro® Energy Water ● Monster Hydro® Super Sport ● Monster Super Fuel® ● Monster Dragon Tea® ● Reign Total Body Fuel® ● Reign Inferno® Thermogenic Fuel ● Reign Storm® ● True North® | ● NOS® ● Full Throttle® ● Burn® ● Mother® ● Nalu® ● Ultra Energy® ● Play® and Power Play® (stylized) ● Relentless® ● BPM® ● BU® ● Gladiator® ● Samurai® ● Live+® ● Predator® ● Fury® |
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We also develop, market, sell and distribute craft beers, hard seltzers and flavored malt beverages (“FMBs”) under a number of brands, including Jai Alai® IPA, Florida ManTM IPA, Dale’s Pale Ale®, Wild BasinTM Hard Seltzers, Dallas Blonde®, Deep EllumTM IPA, Perrin Brewing CompanyTM Black Ale, Hop Rising® Double IPA, Wasatch® Apricot Hefeweizen, The Beast UnleashedTM and a host of other brands.
We also develop, market, sell and distribute still and sparkling waters under the Monster® Tour WaterTM brand name.
Industry Overview
The “alternative” beverage category combines non-carbonated, ready-to-drink iced teas, lemonades, juice cocktails, single-serve juices and fruit beverages, ready-to-drink dairy and coffee drinks, energy drinks, sports drinks and single-serve still waters (flavored, unflavored and enhanced) with “new age” beverages, including sodas that are considered natural, sparkling juices and flavored sparkling beverages. According to Beverage Marketing Corporation, domestic U.S. wholesale sales in 2022 for the “alternative” beverage category of the market are estimated at approximately $72.9 billion, representing an increase of approximately 10.4% over estimated domestic U.S. wholesale sales in 2021 of approximately $66.1 billion.
Reportable Segments
We have four operating and reportable segments: (i) Monster Energy® Drinks segment (“Monster Energy® Drinks”), which is primarily comprised of our Monster Energy® drinks, Reign Total Body Fuel® high performance energy drinks, Monster_®_ Tour WaterTM and True North® Pure Energy Seltzers, (ii) Strategic Brands segment (“Strategic Brands”), which is primarily comprised of the various energy drink brands acquired from The Coca-Cola Company (“TCCC”) in 2015 as well as our affordable energy brands, (iii) Alcohol Brands segment (“Alcohol Brands”), which is primarily comprised of the various craft beers and hard seltzers purchased as part of our acquisition of CANarchy Craft Brewery Collective LLC (“CANarchy”) on February 17, 2022 as well as The Beast UnleashedTM FMBs and (iv) Other segment (“Other”), which is comprised of certain products sold by American Fruits and Flavors LLC (“AFF”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, to independent third-party customers (the “AFF Third-Party Products”).
Our Monster Energy® Drinks segment primarily generates net operating revenues by selling ready-to-drink packaged energy drinks primarily to bottlers and full service beverage distributors. In some cases, we sell directly to retail grocery and specialty chains, wholesalers, club stores, mass merchandisers, convenience chains, drug stores, foodservice customers, value stores, e-commerce retailers and the military.
Our Strategic Brands segment primarily generates net operating revenues by selling “concentrates” and/or “beverage bases” to authorized bottling and canning operations. Such bottlers generally combine the concentrates and/or beverage bases with sweeteners, water and other ingredients to produce ready-to-drink packaged energy drinks. The ready-to-drink packaged energy drinks are then sold to other bottlers, full service distributors or retailers, including, retail grocery and specialty chains, wholesalers, club stores, mass merchandisers, convenience chains, foodservice customers, drug stores, value stores, e-commerce retailers and the military. To a lesser extent, our Strategic Brands segment generates net operating revenues by selling certain ready-to-drink packaged energy drinks to bottlers and full service beverage distributors.
Generally, the Monster Energy® Drinks segment generates higher per case net operating revenues, but lower per case gross profit margin percentages than the Strategic Brands segment.
The Company’s Alcohol Brands segment primarily generates operating revenues by selling kegged and ready-to-drink canned beers, hard seltzers and FMBs, primarily to beer distributors in the United States.
Generally, the Alcohol Brands segment will have lower gross profit margin percentages than the Monster Energy® Drinks segment.
For certain risks with respect to our energy drinks see “Part I, Item 1A – Risk Factors” below.
Corporate History
In the 1930s, Hubert Hansen and his sons started a business selling fresh non-pasteurized juices in Los Angeles, California. In 1977, Tim Hansen, one of the grandsons of Hubert Hansen, perceived a demand for shelf stable pasteurized natural juices and juice blends and formed Hansen Foods, Inc. (“HFI”). HFI expanded its product line from juices to include Hansen’s Natural Soda® brand sodas. In 1990, California Co-Packers Corporation (d/b/a Hansen Beverage Company) (“CCC”) acquired certain assets of HFI, including the right to market the Hansen’s® brand name. In 1992, Hansen Natural Corporation acquired the Hansen’s® brand natural soda and apple juice business from CCC. Under our ownership, the Hansen’s® beverage business significantly expanded to include a wide range of beverages within the growing “alternative” beverage category including, in particular, energy drinks. In 2012, we changed our name from Hansen Natural Corporation to Monster Beverage Corporation. In 2015, we acquired various energy brands from TCCC and disposed of our non-energy drink business. In 2016, we completed our acquisition of flavor supplier and long-time business partner AFF.
CANarchy Acquisition
On February 17, 2022, we completed our acquisition of CANarchy, a craft beer and hard seltzer company, for $329.5 million in cash (net of cash acquired), after certain working capital adjustments (the “CANarchy Transaction”). The transaction facilitates our entry into the alcohol beverage sector and brings the Cigar CityTM family of brands including Jai Alai® IPA and Florida ManTM IPA, the Oskar BluesTM family of brands including Dale’s Pale Ale®, Wild BasinTM Hard Seltzers, the Deep EllumTM family of brands including Dallas Blonde® and Deep EllumTM IPA, the Perrin Brewing CompanyTM family of brands including Black Ale, the Squatters® family of brands including Hop Rising® Double IPA and the Wasatch® family of brands including Apricot Hefeweizen to our beverage portfolio. The transaction did not include CANarchy’s stand-alone restaurants. Our organizational structure for our existing energy beverage business remains unchanged. CANarchy is functioning independently, retaining its own organizational structure and team.
2022 Product Introductions
During 2022, we continued to expand our existing energy drink portfolio by adding additional products to our portfolio in a number of countries and further developed our distribution markets. During 2022, we sold the following new products to our customers:
| ● | Java Monster® Cold Brew Latte |
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| ● | Java Monster® Cold Brew Sweet Black |
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| ● | Juice Monster® Aussie Style LemonadeTM |
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| ● | Live+® Watermelon |
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| ● | Monster® (stylized) Reserve Orange Dreamsicle |
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| ● | Monster Energy® Lewis Hamilton 44 Zero Sugar |
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| ● | Monster Energy® Ultra Peachy Keen® |
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| ● | Mother® Kiwi Sublime |
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| ● | Mother® Lava Guava |
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| ● | Nalu® Melon Splash |
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| ● | Play® Fruit Punch |
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| ● | Play® Peach |
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| ● | Predator® Peach |
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| ● | Predator® Red Apple |
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| ● | Rehab® Monster® Watermelon |
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| ● | Reign Total Body Fuel® Reignbow Sherbet |
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| ● | Reign Total Body Fuel® Tropical Storm |
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| ● | Relentless® Peach |
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| ● | Relentless® Raspberry |
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In the normal course of business, we discontinue certain products and/or product lines. Those products or product lines discontinued in 2022, either individually or in aggregate, did not have a material adverse impact on our financial position, results of operations or liquidity.
Products – Monster Energy® Drinks Segment
Monster Energy® Drinks – a line of carbonated energy drinks. Our Monster Energy® drinks contain vitamins, minerals, nutrients, herbs and other ingredients (collectively, “supplement ingredients”). We offer the following energy drinks under the Monster Energy® drink product line: Monster Energy®, Monster Energy® Zero Sugar, Lo-Carb Monster Energy®, Monster Assault®, Monster® Mango Loco®, Juice Monster® Aussie Style LemonadeTM, Juice Monster® Khaotic®, Juice Monster® Mango Loco®, Juice Monster® Pacific Punch®, Juice Monster® PapillonTM (Juiced Monster®
Monarch in certain countries) Juice Monster® Pipeline Punch®, Juice Monster® Ripper®, Monster Energy® Import, Monster Energy® Export, M3(stylized)®, Monster Mule®, Monster Cuba Libre®, Monster Energy Zero Ultra®, Monster Energy Ultra Black®, Monster Energy Ultra Blue®, Monster Energy Ultra Fiesta® Mango, Monster Energy® Ultra Golden Pineapple®, Monster Energy Ultra Paradise®, Monster Energy® Ultra Peachy Keen®, Monster Energy Ultra Red®, Monster Energy Ultra Rosa®, Monster Energy Ultra Strawberry Dreams®, Monster Energy Ultra Sunrise®, Monster Energy Ultra Violet®, Monster Energy Ultra® Watermelon, Monster Energy® Mixxd Punch, Monster Energy® Valentino Rossi, Monster Energy® Lewis Hamilton 44, Monster Energy® Lewis Hamilton 44 Zero Sugar, Monster Energy® Super Cola® (Japan), Monster® (stylized) Reserve Kiwi Strawberry, Monster® (stylized) Reserve Orange Dreamsicle, Monster® (stylized) Reserve Watermelon and Monster® (stylized) Reserve White Pineapple.
Java Monster® Coffee + Energy Drinks – a line of non-carbonated dairy based coffee + energy drinks. We offer the following coffee + energy drinks under the Java Monster® product line: Java Monster® 300 French Vanilla, Java Monster® 300 Mocha, Java Monster® Cold Brew Latte, Java Monster® Cold Brew Sweet Black, Java Monster® Irish Blend®, Java Monster® Kona Blend, Java Monster® Loca Moca®, Java Monster® Mean Bean®, Java Monster® Salted Caramel and Java Monster® Vanilla Light.
Monster Energy® Dragon Iced Tea_TM Energy Teas – a line of non-carbonated energy teas. We offer the following energy teas under the Monster Energy®_ Dragon Iced TeaTM product line in different countries: Green Tea, Peach Tea, Raspberry Tea and Lemon Tea.
Monster Hydro® includes two product lines: Energy Water and Super Sport. Monster Hydro® Energy Water is a line of non-carbonated, lightly sweetened refreshment + energy drinks. We offer the following refreshment + energy drinks under the Monster Hydro® Energy Water product line: Blue Ice®, Watermelon®, Purple Passion® and Tropical Thunder®. Monster Hydro® Super Sport is a line of non-carbonated, lightly sweetened refreshment + energy drinks that features an enhanced electrolyte blend and BCAA’s. We offer the following refreshment + energy drinks under the Monster Hydro® Super Sport product line: Blue Streak, Killer Kiwi, Macho Mango and Red Dawg.
Monster Energy® Nitro – a line of carbonated energy drinks containing nitrous oxide. We offer the following energy drinks under the Monster Energy® Nitro product line: Cosmic Peach and Super Dry.
_Monster® Tour Water_TM – a line of deep well still and sparkling waters.
Rehab® Monster® Energy Drinks – a line of non-carbonated energy drinks with electrolytes. We offer the following energy drinks under the Rehab® Monster® product line: Peach Tea, Raspberry Tea, Strawberry Lemonade, Tea + Lemonade and Watermelon.
Reign Total Body Fuel® High Performance Energy Drinks – a line of high performance energy drinks with BCAA’s, B vitamins, electrolytes and CoQ10 with zero sugar. We offer the following high performance energy drinks under the Reign Total Body Fuel® product line: Cherry Limeade, Lemon Hdz, Lilikoi Lychee, Mang-O-Matic, Melon Mania, Orange Dreamsicle, Peach Fizz, Razzle Berry, Reignbow Sherbet, Strawberry Sublime, Tropical Storm and White Gummy Bear.
Reign Inferno® Thermogenic Fuel High Performance Energy Drinks – a line of high performance energy drinks with a thermogenic performance blend in addition to BCAA’s, B vitamins, electrolytes, and CoQ10 with zero sugar. We offer the following high performance energy drinks under the Reign Inferno® Thermogenic Fuel product line: Red Dragon and Watermelon Warlord.
Reign Storm® Total Wellness Energy Drinks – a line of better-for-you energy drinks with natural caffeine, Biotin, Zinc, B vitamins, Vitamin A and Vitamin C, with zero sugar. We offer the following under the Reign Storm® Total Wellness Energy product line: Valencia Orange, Kiwi Blend, Peach Nectarine, and Harvest Grape.
True North® Pure Energy Seltzers – a line of natural, plant-based energy drinks with an immunity boost, containing zero sugar, sweeteners, artificial flavors or colors. We offer the following energy seltzers under the True North® product line: Black Cherry, Cucumber Lime, Grapefruit Lemonade, Mandarin Yuzu, Watermelon Mist and White Peach Pear.
Products – Strategic Brands Segment
BPM® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the BPM® product line: Focus Berry Red, Mango and Sour Twist.
BU® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drink under the BU® product line: Original.
Burn® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Burn® product line: Apple Kiwi, Blue, Dark Energy, Fruit Punch, Mango, Original, Passion Punch, Peach, Peach Mango, Pineapple, Royal, Sour Twist and Zero Raspberry.
Full Throttle® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Full Throttle® product line: Original (Citrus) and True Blue.
Fury® – a line of affordable carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Fury_®_ product line: Gold Strike and Mean Green.
Gladiator® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drink under the Gladiator® product line: Original.
Live+® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Live+® product line: Ascend, Ignite, Persist and Watermelon.
Mother® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Mother_®_ product line: Epic Swell, Frosty Berry, Kicked Apple_®_, Kiwi Sublime, Lava Guava, Original, Passion, Sugar Free, Tropical BlastTM and Zero Sugar Razzle Berry.
Nalu® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Nalu_®_ product line: Black Tea & Passion Fruit, Exotic, Frost, Green Tea & Ginger, Hibiscus Rooibos, Melon Splash, Original and Passion.
NOS® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the NOS_®_ product line: GT Grape, Original and Sonic Sour.
Play® and Power Play® (stylized) – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Play_®_ and Power Play® (stylized) product line: Apple Kiwi, Fruit Punch, Mango, Passion Fruit, Peach, Original and Sugar Free.
Predator® – a line of affordable carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Predator_®_ product line: Gold Strike, Malt Smash, Mango Mayhem, Mean Green, Peach, Purple Rain, Red Apple, Spicy Ginger and Tropical.
Relentless® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Relentless_®_ product line: Apple Kiwi, Cherry, Origin, Passion Punch, Peach, and Raspberry.
Samurai® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Samurai® product line: Fruity and Strawberry.
Ultra Energy® – a line of carbonated energy drinks. We offer the following energy drinks under the Ultra Energy® product line: Apple Kiwi, Original, Passion Punch, Peach Mango and Zero Raspberry.
Products – Alcohol Brands Segment
Cigar City_TM – a line of craft beers. We offer the following brands under the Cigar CityTM brand family: Jai Alai®_, Florida ManTM, and others.
Oskar Blues_TM – a line of craft beers. We offer the following brands under the Oskar BluesTM brand family: Dale’s Pale Ale®_, Double Dale’s, Mama’s Little Yella Pils, and others.
Deep Ellum_TM – a line of craft beers. We offer the following brands under the Deep EllumTM brand family: Dallas Blonde®_, Deep EllumTM IPA, and others.
Squatters® – a line of craft beers. We offer the following brands under the Squatters® brand family: Hop Rising® Double IPA, and others.
_Wild Basin_TM – a line of craft hard seltzers. We offer the following flavors under the Wild BasinTM product line: Lemon, Grapefruit, Peach, Berry Sorbet, Black Cherry, Strawberry and others.
Wasatch® – a line of craft beers. We offer a number of brands under the Wasatch_®_ brand family including Apricot Hefeweizen and others.
Perrin – a line of craft beers. We offer a number of brands under the Perrin brand family including Black Ale and others.
_The Beast Unleashed_TM – a line of FMBs. We offer the following flavors under The Beast UnleashedTM brand family: Mean Green, Peach Perfect, Scary Berries, and White Haze.
Products – Other Segment
AFF sells a limited number of products to independent third-party customers.
Other Products
We continue to evaluate and, where considered appropriate, introduce additional products, flavors and types of beverages to complement our existing product lines. We may also evaluate, and where considered appropriate, introduce additional types of consumer products we consider to be complementary to our existing products and/or to which our brand names are able to add value.
The Company also sells and/or enters into license agreements that generate revenues associated with third-party sales of non-beverage products bearing the Company’s trademarks including, but not limited to, clothing, backpacks, hats, t-shirts, jackets, helmets and automotive wheels.
Products – Packaging
Our products are packaged in a variety of different package types and sizes including, but not limited to, aluminum cans, aluminum cap cans, sleek aluminum cans, aluminum cans with re-sealable ends, kegs as well as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles.
Manufacture and Distribution
AFF develops and manufactures the primary flavors for our Monster Energy® Drinks segment.
In 2022, we continued to outsource the manufacturing process for our finished goods energy drink products to third-party bottlers and contract packers.
We purchase flavor ingredients, flavors, concentrates, sweeteners, juices, supplement ingredients, cans, bottles, caps, labels, trays, boxes and other ingredients for our non-alcohol products from ingredient suppliers, which are delivered to our various third-party bottlers and co-packers. In some cases, certain common supplies may be purchased by our various third-party bottlers and co-packers. Depending on the product, the third-party bottlers or co-packers add filtered water and/or other ingredients (including supplement ingredients) for the manufacture and packaging of the finished products into our approved containers in accordance with our recipes and formulas. Depending on the beverage, the bottler/packer may also add carbonation to the products as part of the production process.
For our Strategic Brands segment, we primarily purchase concentrates and/or beverage bases from ingredient suppliers, which are then sold to certain of our various third-party bottlers/distributors. The third-party bottlers/distributors are responsible for the manufacture and packaging of the finished products, including the procurement of all other required ingredients and packaging materials. For certain limited products in the Strategic Brands segment, we may purchase flavors, concentrates, sweeteners, juices, supplement ingredients, cans, bottles, caps, labels, trays, boxes and other ingredients for our Strategic Brand products from our suppliers, which are delivered to our various third-party bottlers and co-packers. In some cases, certain common supplies may be purchased by our various third-party bottlers and co-packers. Depending on the product, the third-party bottlers or co-packers add filtered water and/or other ingredients (including supplement ingredients), for the manufacture and packaging of the finished products into our approved containers in accordance with our recipes and formulas. Depending on the beverage, the bottler/co-packer may also add carbonation to the products as part of the production process.
For our Alcohol Brands segment, we purchase cans, cartons, hops, malt, yeast, sugar, ethanol and other additives and flavorings and packaging materials from ingredient and raw material suppliers to be used in the brewing, fermentation, and packaging of alcohol beers and FMB products. We are granted a right-of-use for any kegs used in production from a third-party supplier at a contracted rate per fill. Most of our alcohol finished goods are manufactured at one of our seven owned or leased manufacturing facilities, but we have started and will increase production and packaging at co-packers as we require additional capacity.
Co-Packing Arrangements
All of our non-alcohol and certain alcohol finished goods are manufactured by various third-party bottlers and co-packers situated throughout the United States and abroad, under separate arrangements with each party. Our co-packaging arrangements vary in terms and do not generally obligate us to procure minimum quantities of products within specified periods. However, from time to time, we may enter into manufacturing contracts with agreed upon minimum quantities to ensure continuity of supply of certain products in certain territories.
In some instances, subject to agreement, certain equipment may be purchased exclusively by us and/or jointly with our co-packers, and installed at their facilities to enable them to produce certain of our products. In certain cases, such equipment remains our property and is required to be returned to us upon termination of the packing arrangements with such co-packers, unless we are reimbursed by the co-packer at the then book value or via a per-case credit over a pre-determined number of cases that are produced at the facilities concerned.
For our Monster Energy® Drinks segment, we are generally responsible for arranging for the purchase and delivery to our third-party bottlers and co-packers of the containers in which our beverage products are packaged.
Our products are packaged in a number of locations, both domestically and internationally. As distribution volumes increase in both our domestic and international markets, we will continue to source additional packing arrangements.
Our ability to estimate demand for our products is imprecise, particularly with new products, and may be less precise during periods of rapid growth, including in new markets. If we materially underestimate demand for our products and/or are unable to secure sufficient ingredients or raw materials including, but not limited to, aluminum cans, aluminum cap cans, sleek aluminum cans, aluminum cans with re-sealable ends, PET plastic bottles, caps, labels, flavor ingredients, flavors, juice concentrates, coffee, tea, supplement ingredients, ethanol, other ingredients and certain sweeteners, and/or procure adequate packing arrangements and/or obtain adequate or timely shipment of our products, we might not be able to satisfy demand on a short-term basis. (See “Part I, Item 1A – Risk Factors”).
For most of our products there are limited co-packing facilities in our domestic and international markets with adequate capacity and/or suitable equipment to package our products. We believe a short disruption or delay in production would not significantly affect our revenues; however, as alternative co-packing facilities in our domestic and international markets with adequate long-term capacity may not be available for such products, either at commercially reasonable rates and/or within a reasonably short time period, if at all, a lengthy disruption or delay in production of any of such products could significantly affect our revenues.
We continue to actively seek alternative and/or additional co-packing facilities around the world (including in Africa, Asia, Australia, Central and South America, China, Europe, India, Mexico, the Middle East and the United States) with adequate capacity and capability for the production of our various products to minimize transportation costs and transportation-related damages as well as to mitigate the risk of a disruption in production and/or importation.
Distribution Agreements
During 2022, we continued to expand distribution of our products in both our domestic and international markets.
Distribution levels vary by product and geographic location. Net sales outside the United States were $2.36 billion, $2.04 billion and $1.51 billion for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Monster Energy® Distribution Agreements
We have entered into agreements with various bottlers/distributors providing for the distribution of our Monster Energy® energy drinks during initial terms of up to twenty years, which may be renewed thereafter for additional terms ranging from one to five years, subject to certain terms and conditions, which may vary depending on the form of the agreement. Such agreements remain in effect for their then-current term as long as our products are being distributed, but are subject to specified termination rights held by each party, which may include by way of example, and depending on the form of agreement, termination upon: mutual agreement; material breach of the agreement by, or an insolvency of, either party; deadlock; change of control; changes in legal or regulatory conditions and termination of certain related agreements. Additionally, we are entitled to terminate certain distribution agreements at any time without cause upon payment of a termination fee, including a limited number of distribution agreements with TCCC network bottlers that were entered into prior to 2015.
Certain of our material distribution arrangements for our Monster Energy® brand energy drinks, as amended from time to time, are described below:
| (a) | Amended and Restated Distribution Coordination Agreement with TCCC, pursuant to which we have designated, and in the future may designate, subject to TCCC’s approval, territories in Canada and the United States in which bottlers from TCCC’s network of wholly or partially-owned and independent bottlers (the “TCCC North American Bottlers”) will distribute and sell, or continue to distribute and sell, our Monster Energy® brand energy drinks. |
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| (b) | Amended and Restated International Distribution Coordination Agreement with TCCC, pursuant to which we have designated, and in the future may designate, countries, or territories within countries, in which we wish to appoint TCCC network bottlers to distribute and sell our Monster Energy® brand energy drinks, subject to TCCC’s approval. In February 2020, the Amended and Restated International Distribution Coordination Agreement with TCCC was renewed for an additional five-year term. |
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| (c) | Additionally, we have entered into distribution agreements for certain of our Monster Energy® products with various TCCC network bottlers, both in the United States and internationally. |
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All distribution territories in the United States, and substantially all distribution territories internationally have been transitioned to TCCC network bottlers/distributors.
Strategic Brands Distribution Agreements
We have entered into distribution coordination agreements with TCCC pursuant to which we have designated, and in the future may designate, subject to TCCC’s approval, territories in which TCCC network bottlers will distribute our Strategic Brands energy drinks. We have entered into agreements with various TCCC network bottlers, both in the United States and internationally, providing for the distribution and sale of our Strategic Brands energy drinks.
Alcohol Brands Distribution Agreements
CANarchy has entered into agreements with various beer distributors, both in the United States and internationally, providing for the distribution of our alcohol products. Such agreements have varying terms and durations. CANarchy, along with Monster Brewing LLC, has also entered into distribution agreements with licensed beer distributors for the exclusive distribution of certain beverages in agreed upon territories.
Raw Materials and Suppliers
The principal raw materials used in the manufacturing of our products are aluminum cans, aluminum cap cans, sleek aluminum cans, aluminum cans with re-sealable ends, PET plastic bottles, caps, kegs, cartons as well as flavors, juice concentrates, glucose, sugar, sucralose, milk, cream, coffee, tea, hops, malt, yeast, ethanol, supplement ingredients and other packaging materials, the costs of which are subject to fluctuations.
AFF is the primary flavor supplier for our Monster Energy® brand energy drinks. We also purchase flavors from other suppliers as well as juices, supplement ingredients, glucose, sugar, sucralose, other sweeteners and other ingredients from independent suppliers located in the United States and abroad.
For our Strategic Brands energy drinks, we purchase flavors, concentrates and/or beverage bases from flavor suppliers including TCCC in the United States and abroad, and may purchase certain other ingredients from independent suppliers located in the United States and abroad.
With regard to our Java Monster® product line, the dairy and retort co-packing industries are subject to shortages and increased demand from time to time, which may result in production disruption and/or higher prices.
For certain flavors purchased from third-party suppliers and used in certain of our Monster Energy® brand energy drinks, Strategic Brands energy drinks and/or our alcohol drinks, these third-party flavor suppliers own the proprietary rights to certain of their flavor formulas. We do not have possession of the list of such flavor ingredients or formulas used in the production of certain of our products and certain of our blended concentrates, and we may be unable to obtain comparable flavors or concentrates from alternative suppliers on short notice. Our third-party flavor suppliers generally do not make such flavors and/or blended concentrates available to other third-party customers.
We have entered into purchase agreements with key packaging and ingredient suppliers to maintain an adequate supply of such packaging and ingredients for the next one to four years based on current anticipated volume needs. Changes to those volume needs could result in shortages or excess supply of these contracted varieties. Many outside factors such as crop yield, weather, agricultural legislation, and the geopolitical climate could impact supply and price; however, we do source certain ingredients from different regions and suppliers to mitigate some of this risk.
We have identified alternative suppliers for many of the ingredients contained in many of our beverages. However, industry-wide shortages of certain flavor ingredients, flavors, fruits and fruit juices, coffee, tea, dairy-based products, supplement ingredients and sweeteners have been, and could from time to time in the future be, encountered, which could interfere with and/or delay production of certain of our products.
We continually endeavor to develop back-up sources of supply for certain of our flavor ingredients, flavors and concentrates purchased from third-party suppliers, as well as to negotiate arrangements with our existing suppliers, which would enable us to obtain access to certain of such concentrates or flavor formulas under certain circumstances. We have been partially successful in these endeavors. Additionally, in a limited number of cases, contractual restrictions and/or the necessity to obtain regulatory approvals and licenses may limit our ability to enter into agreements with alternative suppliers, manufacturers and/or distributors.
Competition
The beverage industry is highly competitive. The principal areas of competition are pricing, packaging, development of new products and flavors as well as promotional and marketing strategies. Our products compete with a wide range of drinks produced by a relatively large number of companies, many of which have substantially greater financial, marketing and distribution resources than we do.
Important factors affecting our ability to compete successfully include brand and product image, taste and flavor of products, trade and consumer promotions, rapid and effective development of new and unique cutting-edge products, ingredients, production processes, attractive and different packaging, brand exposure and marketing as well as pricing. We depend on our bottlers and full service beverage distributors to prioritize our products, provide stable and reliable distribution and secure adequate shelf space in retail outlets. Competitive pressures in the “alternative,” energy, coffee, “functional,” and “beyond beer” (hard seltzers, FMBs, canned cocktails and other ready-to-drink beverages) beverage categories could cause our products to maintain or to lose market share, or we could experience price erosion, which could materially impact our business and results of operations.
We have experienced and continue to experience competition from new entrants in the energy drink, energy shot, beer and beyond beer categories. For instance, a number of companies which market and distribute iced teas, coffees, juice cocktails, enhanced waters and sports drinks in various larger volume packages in glass and plastic bottles (including BODYARMOR, Vitamin Water, CORE, Arizona, Ocean Spray, Powerade, Prime, Gatorade Bolt 24 and Starbucks) and 12- and 16-ounce cans (such as Mountain Dew Kickstart and Game Fuel), have added supplement ingredients to their products with a view to marketing their products as “functional” or energy beverages or as having “functional” benefits. We believe that many of those products contain lower levels of supplement ingredients, principally deliver refreshment and are positioned differently from our energy or “functional” drinks.
We are also subject to increasing levels of regulatory issues including in relation to the registration and/or taxation of our products in certain new international markets, which may put us at a competitive disadvantage. (See “Government Regulation” below for additional information).
We compete not only for consumer preference, but also for maximum marketing, sales efforts and attention from our multi-brand licensed bottlers and distributors, many of which have a principal affiliation with competing companies and brands. Our products compete with all liquid refreshments and in many cases with products of much larger and in some cases better financed competitors, including the products of numerous nationally and internationally known producers such
as TCCC, PepsiCo, Inc. (“PepsiCo”), Keurig Dr. Pepper Inc. (“KDP”) and Red Bull GmbH. From time to time, such larger competitors may enter into distribution agreements with certain other competitors. We also compete with companies that are smaller or primarily local in operation. Our products also compete with private-label brands such as those carried by grocery store chains, convenience store chains and club stores.
Domestically, our energy drinks compete directly with Red Bull, Rockstar, MTN Dew Amp, MTN Dew Kickstart, MTN Dew GameFuel and MTN Dew Energy, G Fuel, Venom, VPX Redline, 5-Hour Energy Shots, MiO Energy, VPX Bang, V8 + Energy, Uptime, hi*ball, CELSIUS, C4, Alani Nu, 3D Energy, ZOA Energy, Rowdy Energy, GHOST Energy, Gatorade Fast Twitch, Prime Energy, Starbucks BAYA Energy, Guayaki Yerba Mate, Optimum Nutrition, Adrenaline Shoc and many other brands.
Internationally, our energy drinks compete with Red Bull (including non-carbonated Red Bull in China and Asia), Rockstar, V-Energy, Lucozade, and numerous local and private-label brands that usually differ from country to country, such as HELL, Amper, Shock, Tiger, Fearless, Boost, TNT, Shark, Dragon, Score, Sting, Hot 6, Suntory ZONE, Battery, Bullit, Flash Up, Black, Non-Stop, Bomba, Semtex, Vive 100, Dark Dog, Speed, Guarana, M-150, Lipovitan, Bacchus, Volt, Bolt, Mr. Big, Boom, Raptor, Amp, Fusion, Hi-Tiger, Eastroc Super Drink, Carabao, Power Horse, XL, Crazy Tiger, Effect, Missile, Nocco, Adrenaline Rush, Real Gold, War Horse, BLU, CELSIUS, Eneryeti, GURU Organic Energy and a host of other international brands.
Our Reign Total Body Fuel® and Reign Inferno® Thermogenic Fuel high performance energy drinks compete with VPX Bang, Adrenaline Shoc, C4, CELSIUS HEAT, NOCCO, Rockstar XDURANCE, Ghost Energy, G Fuel, VPX Redline, Bucked Up Energy, and 3D in the performance energy category.
Our Java Monster® product line competes directly with Starbucks Frappuccino, Starbucks Doubleshot, Starbucks Tripleshot and other Starbucks coffee drinks, Costa Coffee, Dunkin Donuts, Stok, High Brew, Douwe Egberts Coffee, Emmi CAFFÈ, Bang Keto Coffee, Nescafe, Black Rifle, International Delight, Rise Brewing Co. and Black Stag.
Our Monster Hydro® Energy Water and Monster Hydro® Super Sport product lines compete directly with BODYARMOR, Vitamin Water, Sparkling Ice, Bai, Propel, Vita Coco, Lucozade, Powerade, Gatorade, Gatorade Fast Twitch, Gatorade Bolt24 and Prime Hydration.
Our True North® Pure Energy Seltzer product line competes directly with Celsius and Alani Nu.
Our CANarchy family of products and The Beast UnleashedTM product line competes within the FMB, hard seltzer, and craft beer categories of the alcohol beverage industry. Competition includes microbreweries, regional brewers, national craft brewers, and large international and domestic producers of beers, FMBs, and hard seltzers such as Molson Coors, Constellation Brands, AB InBev, The Boston Beer Company and The Mark Anthony Group among many others.
Sales and Marketing
Our sales and marketing strategy for all our non-alcohol beverages is to focus our efforts on developing brand awareness through image-enhancing programs and product sampling. We support our non-alcohol brands with prize promotions, price promotions, competitions, endorsements from selected public and sports figures, sports personality endorsements, sampling and sponsorship of selected athletes, teams, series, bands, esports, causes and events. We utilize “push-pull” methods to enhance shelf and display space exposure in sales outlets (including racks, coolers and barrel coolers), advertising, in-store promotions and in-store placement of point-of-sale materials to encourage demand from consumers for our products. In-store posters, outdoor posters, social media, concerts, print, radio and television advertising (directly and through our sponsorships and endorsements) and coupons may also be used to promote our brands. We use our branded vehicles and other promotional vehicles at events where we offer samples of our products to consumers. These strategies and activities may apply to the CANarchy family of products or The Beast UnleashedTM where permitted by applicable laws.
We also manage taprooms and brewpubs adjacent to some of our manufacturing locations where we sell our alcohol products, merchandise, and food to consumers in a branded environment.
We believe that one of the keys to success in the beverage industry is differentiation, making our brands and products visually appealing and distinctive from other beverages on the shelves of retailers. We review our products and packaging on an ongoing basis and, where practical, endeavor to make them different and unique. The labels and graphics for many of our products are redesigned and refreshed from time to time to maximize their visibility and identification, wherever they may be placed in stores, which we continue to reevaluate from time to time.
Where appropriate, we partner with our bottlers/distributors and/or retailers to assist our marketing efforts.
We increased expenditures for our sales and marketing programs by approximately 11.4% in the twelve-months ended December 31, 2022 compared to the twelve-months ended December 31, 2021.
Customers
Our non-alcohol customers are primarily full service beverage bottlers/distributors, retail grocery and specialty chains, wholesalers, club stores, mass merchandisers, convenience chains, foodservice customers, value stores, e-commerce retailers and the military. Our alcohol customers are primarily beer distributors who in turn sell to retailers within the alcohol distribution system. Percentages of our gross billings to our various customer types for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 are reflected below. Such information includes sales made by us directly to the customer types concerned, which include our full service beverage bottlers/distributors in the United States. Such full service beverage bottlers/distributors in turn sell certain of our products to some of the same customer types listed below. We limit our description of our customer types to include only our sales to our full service bottlers/distributors without reference to such bottlers/distributors’ sales to their own customers.
| | | | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |||
| U.S. full service bottlers/distributors | 48% | | 51% | | 56% | |
| International full service bottlers/distributors | 39% | | 39% | | 34% | |
| Club stores and e-commerce retailers | 9% | | 8% | | 8% | |
| Retail grocery, direct convenience, specialty chains and wholesalers | 2% | | 1% | | 1% | |
| Alcohol, direct value stores and other | 2% | | 1% | | 1% |
Our non-alcohol customers include Coca-Cola Canada Bottling Limited, Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc., Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Inc., Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling, LLC, Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages LLC, The Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Northern New England, Inc., Swire Pacific Holdings, Inc. (USA), Liberty Coca-Cola Beverages, LLC, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Coca-Cola Hellenic, Coca-Cola FEMSA, Swire Coca-Cola (China), COFCO Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Beverages Africa, Coca-Cola İçecek and certain other TCCC network bottlers, Asahi Soft Drinks, Co., Ltd., Wal-Mart, Inc. (including Sam’s Club), Costco Wholesale Corporation and Amazon.com, Inc.
Our alcohol customers include J.J. Taylor Distributing, Ben E. Keith, Reyes Beer Division, Sheehan Family Companies, and Admiral Beverage.
A decision by any large customer to decrease amounts purchased from us or to cease carrying our products could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. accounted for approximately 11%, 12% and 12% of our net sales for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling, LLC accounted for approximately 9%, 10% and 11% of our net sales for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners accounted for approximately 13%, 12% and 10% of our net sales for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020.
Seasonality
Sales of ready-to-drink beverages are somewhat seasonal, with the second and third calendar quarters accounting for the highest sales volumes. The volume of sales in the beverage industry is affected by weather conditions. However, the energy drink category appears to be less seasonal than traditional beverages. Quarterly fluctuations may also be affected by other factors including the introduction of new products, the opening of new markets, particularly internationally, where temperature fluctuations may be more pronounced, the addition of new bottlers and distributors, changes in the mix of the sales of our finished products and increased or decreased advertising and promotional expenses.
Intellectual Property
We presently have more than 17,500 registered trademarks and pending applications in various countries worldwide, and we apply for new trademarks on an ongoing basis. We regard our trademarks, service marks, copyrights, domain names, trade dress and other intellectual property as very important to our business. We consider Monster®, Monster Energy®, ®, Monster Energy Ultra®, Monster Dragon Iced Tea®, Unleash the Beast!®, Rehab® Monster®, Java Monster®, Muscle Monster®, Punch Monster®, Juice Monster®, Hydro® (stylized), Monster HydroSport Super Fuel®, Hydro Super Sport®, Monster Super Fuel®, Espresso Monster®, Monster Energy® Nitro, Reign Total Body Fuel®, Reign Inferno®, Reign Storm®, True North®, BU®, Nalu®, NOS®, Full Throttle®, Burn®, Mother®, Ultra Energy®, Play® and Power Play® (stylized), Relentless®, Predator®, Fury®, Live+®, BPM®, Gladiator®, Samurai®, Oskar Blues Brewery®, Cigar City®, Deep Ellum Brewing Co®, Perrin Brewing Company®, Squatters®, Wasatch®, Jai Alai®, Dale’s Pale Ale®, Dallas Blonde®, Wild BasinTM, Dale’s®, Mama’s Little Yella Pils®, Hop Rising® and The Beast UnleashedTM to be our core trademarks. We also own the intellectual property of our most important flavors for certain of our Monster Energy® Brand energy drinks in perpetuity.
We have registered Monster®, Monster Energy®, ®, Monster Energy Ultra®, Unleash the Beast!®, Rehab® Monster®, Java Monster®, Muscle Monster®, Punch Monster®, Juice Monster®, Hydro® (stylized), Espresso Monster®, True North®, BU®, Nalu®, Burn®, Mother®, Play®, Power Play® (stylized), Relentless®, Ultra Energy®, BPM®, Predator®, Fury®, Live+®, Gladiator®, Samurai®, Reign®, Reign Total Body Fuel® and Reign Inferno® outside of the United States in certain jurisdictions.
We protect our trademarks by applying for registrations and registering our trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and with government agencies in other countries around the world, particularly where our products are distributed and sold. We assert copyright ownership of the statements, graphics and content appearing on the packaging of our products and in our marketing materials. We aggressively pursue individuals and/or entities seeking to profit from the unauthorized use of our trademarks and copyrights, including, without limitation, wholesalers, street vendors, retailers, online auction site sellers and website operators. In addition to initiating civil actions against these individuals and entities, we work with law enforcement officials where appropriate.
Depending upon the jurisdiction, trademarks are valid as long as they are in use and/or their registrations are properly maintained and they have not been found to have become generic. Registrations of trademarks can generally be renewed as long as the trademarks are in use.
We also enforce and protect our trademark rights against third parties infringing or disparaging our trademarks by opposing registration of conflicting trademarks and initiating litigation as necessary.
Government Regulation
The production, distribution and sale in the United States of many of our products are subject to various U.S. federal, state and local regulations, including but not limited to: the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (“FD&C Act”); the Occupational Safety and Health Act and various state laws and regulations governing workplace health and safety; various environmental statutes; the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (“California Proposition 65”); various state and federal laws and regulations pertaining to the sale and distribution of alcohol beverages; data privacy and personal data protection laws and regulations, including the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (as modified by the California Privacy Rights Act) and a number of other federal, state and local statutes and regulations applicable to the production, transportation, sale, safety, advertising, marketing, labeling, packaging, and ingredients of such products. Outside the United States, the production, distribution and sale of many of our products are also subject to numerous statutes and regulations.
We also may in the future be affected by other existing, proposed and potential future regulations or regulatory actions, including those described below, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. See “Part I, Item 1A – Risk Factors – Changes in government regulation, or a failure to comply with existing regulations related to energy drinks, could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations,” “Regulations concerning our alcohol beverages may adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations and inhibit the sales of such products,” and “Significant changes to or failure to comply with various environmental laws may expose us to liability and/or cause certain of our facilities and/or those of our co-packers to close, relocate or operate at reduced production levels, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations” below for additional information.
Furthermore, legislation and regulation may be introduced in the United States and other countries at the federal, state, municipal and supranational level in respect of each of the subject areas discussed below. Public health officials and health advocates are increasingly focused on the public health consequences associated with obesity and alcohol consumption, especially as they may affect children, and are seeking legislative change to reduce the consumption of sweetened and alcohol beverages. There also has been an increased focus on caffeine content in beverages and we are seeing some attention to other ingredients in energy drinks. In some territories, such as the European Union, food additives including sweeteners such as sucralose are subject to a safety re-evaluation which could potentially lead to changes in the specification for such additives or removal from the approved list of additives.
Product Formulation, Labeling, Packaging, and Advertising. Globally, we are subject to a number of regulations applicable to the formulation, labeling, packaging, and advertising (including promotional campaigns) of our products. In California, we are subject to California Proposition 65, a law which requires that a specified warning be provided before exposing California consumers to any product that contains in excess of threshold amounts of a substance listed by California as having been found to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity. California Proposition 65 does not require a warning if the manufacturer of a product can demonstrate that the use of the product in question exposes consumers to an average daily quantity of a listed substance that is below that threshold amount, which is determined either by scientific criteria set forth in applicable regulations or via a “safe harbor” threshold that may be established by the state, or the substance is naturally occurring, or is subject to another applicable exception. If we are required to add warning labels to any of our products or place warnings in certain locations where our products are sold, it will be difficult to predict whether, or to what extent, such a warning would have an adverse impact on sales of our products in those locations or elsewhere. In addition, there has been increasing regulatory activity globally regarding constituents in packaging materials, including perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”). Regardless of whether perceived health consequences of these constituents are justified, such regulatory activity could result in additional government regulations that impact the packaging of our beverages.
In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”) has regulations with respect to serving size information and nutrition labeling on food and beverage products, including a requirement to disclose the amount of added sugars in such products. Further, the U.S. Department of Agriculture promulgated regulations requiring that, by January 1,
2022, the labels of certain bioengineered foods include a disclosure that the food is bioengineered. These regulations may impact, reduce and/or otherwise affect the purchase and consumption of our products by consumers.
Other countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Mexico, the People’s Republic of China, Peru and Uruguay are also considering, or have enacted, new labeling requirements, which may require us to amend our labels and warning statements. The United Kingdom Government has also suggested that it may review food labeling laws following the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union (“Brexit”).
More generally, some markets, such as Tanzania, have specific energy drink standards that do not always allow for inclusion of certain ingredients, such as L-carnitine and ginseng, in our products. Peru also recently challenged the use of L-carnitine in energy drinks. Other markets may also restrict or prohibit the use of ginseng and certain other botanicals in food. We may incur costs to address such country-specific requirements for or face restrictions on our products.
Age and Other Restrictions on Energy Drink Products. Proposals to limit or restrict the sale and/or advertising of energy drinks to minors and/or persons below a specified age, and/or restrict the venues in which energy drinks can be sold, and/or to restrict the use of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly food stamps) to purchase energy drinks have been raised and/or enacted in certain U.S. states, counties, municipalities and/or in certain foreign countries. For example, in the United States, bills seeking to impose an age restriction on the sale of energy drinks have been introduced in the Connecticut, Massachusetts, and South Carolina legislatures. Outside of the United States, for example, Latvia, Lithuania, Turkey, and Bahrain prohibit the sale of energy drinks to persons under the age of 18; Canada prohibits the promotion of energy drinks to children 12 years and under; Latvia and Scotland prohibit the sale of energy drinks in educational establishments; and Turkey prohibits the sale or advertising of energy drinks in “collective consumption areas,” such as sports complexes, schools or hospitals. In Mexico, the States of Tabasco and Oaxaca prohibit the sale of energy drinks to minors and the consumption in schools; Colima prohibits the sale of energy drinks in private and public schools. Other Latin American countries such as Chile and Brazil have been considering age and other sales restrictions on energy drinks, as are other countries such as the United Kingdom (other than Scotland) and Spain. Poland has introduced a far-reaching bill that would, among other measures, ban the sale of energy drinks to persons under 18, ban advertising of energy drinks on television and radio between 6 am and 8 pm with very limited exceptions, ban online and billboard advertising for energy drinks, and effectively ban the sale or distribution of non-energy drink products carrying energy drink branding. Similar rules would not apply to coffee products that contain similar or higher levels of caffeine.
Excise Taxes on Energy Drinks. Legislation that would impose an excise tax on sweetened beverages has been proposed in the U.S. Congress, in some state legislatures and by some local governments, with excise taxes generally ranging between $0.01 and $0.02 per ounce of sweetened beverage. Berkeley, California became the first jurisdiction to pass such a measure, and a general tax of $0.01 per ounce on certain sweetened drinks, including energy drinks, became effective on January 1, 2015. Other U.S. jurisdictions (including Albany, Oakland and San Francisco, California; Boulder, Colorado; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Seattle, Washington, and Washington, DC) have passed similar measures, some of which have been challenged in litigation. The imposition of such taxes on our products would increase the cost of certain of our products or, to the extent levied directly on consumers, make certain of our products less affordable. Excise taxes on sweetened beverages already are in effect in certain foreign countries where we do business, such as France, the United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa, Mexico and Colombia. Poland recently established a tax on drinks with added sugars, specifically targeting beverages containing caffeine and taurine. Other countries are considering similar measures. In addition, legislation has been proposed in certain jurisdictions that would specifically impose excise taxes on energy drinks. For example, Kuwait is considering a proposal that would impose an excise tax on energy drinks. Such targeted legislation has been passed in other countries. For instance, on January 1, 2020, a reform to a Mexican excise tax went into effect that expanded the definition of an “energy drink” subject to this tax to include products with any amount of caffeine (the prior version of the tax required a threshold of 20 milligrams of caffeine per 100 millimeters for the tax to be applicable) and “taurine or glucuronolactone or thiamine and/or any other substance that produces similar stimulating effects.” Hungary has instituted an excise tax to which our products are subject. Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates began
applying a selective tax of 100% on energy drinks in 2017, Qatar and Oman began applying the tax in 2019, and there are indications that a similar measure may be enacted in Kuwait.
Limits on Caffeine Content. Legislation has been proposed to limit the amount of caffeine that may be contained in beverages, including energy drinks. Some jurisdictions where we do business have prescribed limited caffeine content for beverages. For example, in Canada, the maximum amount of caffeine cannot exceed 180 mg per single-serving container or per serving (500 ml) in the case of a multi-serving container. We adjusted the caffeine levels in certain of our Monster Energy® products that are sold in Canada to address these regulations, although the majority of our products were unaffected. In Europe, examples of caffeine restrictions include the Netherlands where there is a limit of 35mg/100ml, and Norway introduced, as of January 1, 2020 (subject to transition periods), a limit of 32mg/100ml. Caffeine limit restrictions or restrictions on combining caffeine with other ingredients or in particular product sectors (such as performance beverages/sport drinks) have also been implemented or proposed in other jurisdictions, including Turkey, India, Pakistan’s Punjab region, Egypt, Spain, Colombia, Iraq, and the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Such restrictions could require reformulations of certain of our products. However, we may not be able to satisfactorily reformulate our products in all jurisdictions that adopt similar legislation.
Limitations on Container Size. We package our products in a variety of different package types and sizes including, for certain of our Monster Energy® brand energy drinks, aluminum cans larger than 16 fluid ounces. Certain jurisdictions, such as Colombia, Costa Rica, Egypt, the Dominican Republic, and Spain, have considered container size limitations on energy drinks and other beverages. If adopted, such limitations may require us to change the container size of our products sold in certain countries. Other countries, like England, have considered and rejected proposed can size limitations although it is open to such markets to revisit these and other similar proposals.
Compliance with Alcohol-Related Regulation and Laws. Our Alcohol Brands segment is regulated by federal, state and local governments in both the U.S. and abroad whose laws and regulations govern the production, distribution and sale of alcohol beverages, including licensing, permitting, advertising and marketing. To operate our breweries, manufacturing facilities and other alcohol-related facilities, as well as to sell our alcohol products, we must obtain and maintain numerous approvals, licenses and permits from governmental agencies, including, but not limited to, the U.S. Department of Treasury, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (“TTB”), the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the FDA, state alcohol regulatory agencies and state and federal environmental agencies. Our breweries, in particular, are subject to audits and inspections by TTB and applicable state alcohol regulatory agencies at any time.
Our alcohol beverages are also subject to various taxes, license fees, and the like levied by governmental entities as well as bonds that such entities may deem necessary to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations. One such tax that we must comply with is the federal excise taxes. Beginning in January 2018, the federal excise taxes imposed on domestic brewers that produce less than 2 million barrels annually were reduced from $7.00 to $3.50 per barrel on the first 60,000 barrels shipped annually. State and local excise taxes, on the other hand, vary based on the alcohol content and type of beverage. Federal, state, or local governments may increase such excise taxes in the future.
Compliance with Environmental Laws. Our facilities and those of our co-packers in the United States are subject to federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, including those relating to air emissions, water discharges, the use of water resources, waste disposal, and recycling. Our operations in other countries are subject to similar federal, state, local and supranational laws and regulations that may be applicable in such countries. Changes in environmental compliance mandates, and any expenditures necessary to comply with such requirements, could adversely affect our financial performance and future growth. In addition, continuing concern over environmental matters, including climate change, is expected to continue to result in new or increased legal and regulatory requirements (in and outside of the United States), including to reduce or mitigate the potential effects of greenhouse gases, to limit or impose additional costs on commercial water use due to local water scarcity concerns, or to expand mandatory reporting of certain environmental, social and governance metrics. Compliance with these provisions has not had, nor do we expect such compliance to have, any material adverse effect upon our capital expenditures, net income or competitive position.
Container Deposits. Various municipalities, states and foreign countries require that a deposit be charged for certain non-refillable beverage containers. The precise requirements imposed by these measures vary by jurisdiction. Other deposit, recycling, ecotaxes and/or product stewardship proposals have been, and may in the future be, introduced and enacted at the federal, state, and local levels, and in foreign countries.
In California, we are required to collect redemption values from our customers and to remit such redemption values to the State of California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery based upon the number of cans and bottles of certain carbonated and non-carbonated products sold. In certain other states and countries where our products are sold, we are also required to collect deposits from our customers and to remit such deposits to the respective jurisdictions based upon the number of cans and bottles of certain carbonated and non-carbonated products sold in such states.
Human Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2022, we have employees in 72 countries, with a total of 5,296 employees working worldwide. This employee population includes 3,611 employees in North America, 367 employees in Latin America, 275 employees in Asia Pacific and 1,043 employees in Europe, Mideast and Africa (“EMEA”). Most of our employees are full-time (4,607 employees) and the remaining 689 employees hold part-time positions. Of our 5,296 employees, we employ 1,923 in corporate and operational capacities (including administration, human resources, legal, information technology, operations, facilities, warehouse, product development, regulatory and accounting) and 3,373 persons in sales and marketing capacities.
As of December 31, 2022, approximately 43% of our U.S. employees are from one or more underrepresented groups, including, but not limited to, Black, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American and other Indigenous tribes and approximately 36% of our U.S. employees are female.
In 2020, we established our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Leadership Advisory Group, comprised of leaders from across the Company, designed to provide insight on our diversity and inclusion efforts and to assist in the integration of the EDI program within our overall strategy and business objectives. In 2021, we established three regional EDI Working Councils across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC regions. We provide training for our employees covering harassment, discrimination and unconscious bias.
We support our employees through a variety of training, mentorship and development programs. We have a mid-level manager development program, in which participants learn leadership skills, network with peers and senior executives, and tackle critical initiatives. We also have a leadership development platform in partnership with a third party, for senior leaders to receive university grade certificates in business strategy and innovation and complete Food and Beverage Executive courses, as well as an electronic learning platform that focuses on business acumen, professional development and technical capabilities. In addition, we provide employees with access to an e-learning platform that offers courses focused on job and career training, business acumen, professional development and technical capabilities.
We provide compensation packages designed to attract and retain talent while maintaining alignment with market compensation surveys. We have multiple short-term incentive programs focused on incentivizing and retaining talent throughout the organization and provide long-term incentive programs to employees through equity and/or performance cash awards.
We currently cover the cost of insurance premiums including medical (including virtual visits), dental, vision, life, accidental death and dismemberment and short and long term disability, covering full-time employees and share in the cost of insurance premiums covering eligible dependents including medical, dental and vision coverage. We also offer several voluntary benefits to full-time employees, including supplemental life insurance, whole life insurance, accident insurance, critical illness insurance, flexible health spending accounts, flexible spending accounts for childcare, travel insurance, pre-paid legal cover, healthy rewards programs, identity theft assistance, and retirement savings account(s).
We also offer an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to all employees. See Note 19, “Employee Benefit Plan” in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for a discussion of our 401(k) Plan.
Available Information
As a public company, we are required to file our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, proxy statements on Schedule 14A and other information (including any amendments) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). You can find the Company’s SEC filings at the SEC’s website, which contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC, at http://www.sec.gov.
Our Internet address is www.monsterbevcorp.com. Information contained on our website is not part of or incorporated into this filing or any of our other filings with the SEC. Our SEC filings (including any amendments) will be made available free of charge at www.monsterbevcorp.com, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. In addition, you may request a copy of these filings (excluding exhibits) at no cost by writing to, or telephoning us, at the following address or telephone number:
Monster Beverage Corporation
1 Monster Way
Corona, CA 92879
(951) 739-6200
(800) 426-7367
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