Celsius Splits Three Brands Into Separate Units
Beverage operators should watch whether standalone brand presidents change how marketing and distribution are funded across portfolios.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Business Strategy
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Celsius Holdings has split its Celsius, Alani Nu, and Rockstar brands into three separate business units, each led by its own president reporting to CEO John Fieldly. The restructuring matters for U.S. beverage operators because the company is now running its portfolio as distinct entities rather than one consolidated brand house.
Why it matters
Celsius says its three brands are different enough to operate as distinct entities in order to tap their individual growth potential. The move follows an admission in August that the company had gone too far in delaying Celsius-branded innovation, and comes as Celsius brand sales fell 12% in the third quarter from the prior three months.
Celsius reported sales topping $2.5 billion last year, up from $53 million in 2018, and paid $1.8 billion for Alani Nu in early 2025. Its flagship Celsius brand sales declined 12% in the third quarter from the prior three months.
The players
Celsius Holdings
A U.S. beverage company known for its functional energy drinks, operating the Celsius, Alani Nu, and Rockstar brands with sales topping $2.5 billion last year.
John Fieldly
Chief executive of Celsius Holdings since 2018, overseeing the company's acquisitions of Alani Nu and Rockstar.
Alex Zigliara
Executive who joined Celsius from Fiji Water to oversee the Celsius brand as it seeks its next phase of growth.
Russ Savage
Founder of Rockstar Energy who acquired a 4.7% stake in Celsius Holdings in August.
The details
Each brand president will draw on the parent company's marketing, sales, operations and corporate capabilities while running their brand as a distinct unit. Celsius is turning to executives with extensive consumer packaged goods experience to lead two of its biggest brands. Alex Zigliara, who joined from Fiji Water, will oversee the Celsius brand, and Rishi Daing, the company's chief marketing officer, will oversee Rockstar. Celsius is still searching for an executive to run Alani Nu.
Timeline
2018: John Fieldly became CEO as Celsius recorded $53 million in sales.
Early 2025: Celsius bought Alani Nu for $1.8 billion, and a few months later acquired PepsiCo's Rockstar.
August: Rockstar founder Russ Savage acquired a 4.7% stake in Celsius, and the company admitted it had delayed Celsius-branded innovation too far.
Third quarter: Celsius brand sales declined 12% from the prior three months.
Market Landscape
Celsius's 2025 purchases of Alani Nu for $1.8 billion and PepsiCo's Rockstar turned a single-brand company into a three-brand portfolio. The restructuring places those acquisitions under separate leadership rather than one unified brand strategy.
Operators in beverages should watch whether separate brand presidents with CPG backgrounds change how marketing and distribution budgets are allocated across a portfolio. Businesses competing with Celsius, Alani Nu, or Rockstar in the energy drink category should track how the reorganized brands perform against their sales declines.
The takeaway
Portfolio companies facing uneven brand performance can use separate leadership structures to give each brand its own growth path, but the cost is added management layers to coordinate with the parent. Track the Celsius brand's sales trajectory after the Zigliara appointment as an early signal of whether the separation is working.
Further reading
For more on how companies like this restructure around acquired brands, see the Business Strategy section.
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