Monster Beverage Corporation is an American
beverage company that manufactures
energy drink
An energy drink is a type of non-alcoholic psychoactive functional beverage containing stimulant compounds, usually caffeine (at a higher concentration than ordinary soda pop) and taurine, which is marketed as reducing tiredness and improving pe ...
s including
Monster Energy
Monster Energy is a brand of energy drink, energy drinks that was created
by Hansen Natural Company (now Monster Beverage Corporation) in April 2002. In 2022, Monster Energy had a 30.1% Market share, share of the American energy drink market, th ...
,
Relentless,
Reign
A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., King of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-princes of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kin ...
and
Burn
A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ionizing radiation (such as sunburn, caused by ultraviolet radiation). Most burns are due to heat from hot fluids (called scalding), soli ...
. The company was originally founded as Hansen's in 1935 in
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
, originally selling juice products. The company renamed itself as Monster Beverage in 2012.
As of 2020, Monster held 9% of the $86 billion global energy drink market, the second highest share after
Red Bull
Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks created and owned by the Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With a market share of 43%, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2020, and the third most valuable soft drink brand, behind Coca-Cola and ...
.
History
Hansen's was founded in 1935.
In the 1930s, Hubert Hansen and his three sons began selling juice to film studios and retailers in Southern California under the Hansen's name. In the 1970s, Tim Hansen (the grandson of Hubert) developed and marketed a variety of sodas and juices, also under the Hansen's label.
The company became Hansen's Juices, and later The Fresh Juice Company of California. The plant that was opened in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
in 1946 was used until operations were moved to a new plant in
Azusa, California
Azusa ( Tongva: ''Azuksa'', meaning "skunk") is a city in the San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, United States, at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains and located east of downtown Los Angeles.
Its population wa ...
in 1993. The company filed for bankruptcy in 1988, and was acquired by the California CoPackers Corporation and renamed Hansen Natural Company. In 1990, Hansen's (original ticker symbol: HANS) went public with an
initial public offering
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...
. In 1997, Hansen's launched their first energy drink, called Hansen's Energy. In 1998, the company moved from
Anaheim, California
Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...
to
Corona, California
Corona (Spanish language, Spanish for "Crown") is a city in northwestern Riverside County, California, United States, directly bordering Orange County, California, Orange and San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino counties. Its curre ...
. On January 5, 2012, after energy drinks had grown to the largest source of revenue, shareholders agreed to change the name of the company from Hansen's Natural to Monster Beverage Corporation, under the new ticker MNST. Shareholders also approved an increase in the number of authorized shares of common stock from 120,000,000 shares to 240,000,000 shares.
In April 2008, the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...
ruled products containing
high-fructose corn syrup
High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), also known as glucose–fructose, isoglucose, and glucose–fructose syrup, is a sweetener made from corn starch. As in the production of conventional corn syrup, the starch is broken down into glucose by enzy ...
could not be labeled "natural". Shortly after, Hansen's Natural Corporation announced they had begun using cane sugar instead.
In September 2009, Hansen brand Monster Energy sent a
cease and desist
A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the oth ...
letter to
Rock Art Brewery, demanding the
microbrewery
Craft beer is beer manufactured by craft breweries, which typically produce smaller amounts of beer than larger "macro" breweries and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as emphasising enthusiasm, ne ...
stop selling its new Vermonster beer, drop its pursuit of a federal trademark for the name, and pay Hansen's lawyer fees. This resulted in a boycott of all Hansen products by a few Vermont retailers.
The
Coca-Cola Company bought a 16.7% stake for $2.15 billion in Monster Beverage Corp in 2015. This stake peaked at 19.3% due to share buybacks conducted by Monster Beverage Corp in 2018.
In January 2022, the company acquired CANarchy Craft Brewery Collective for . In
February 2022, it was reported Monster and
Constellation Brands were considering a merger which would have a combined market capitalization above $90 billion. In June 2023, Monster reached an agreement to acquire Vital Pharmaceuticals, the owner of
Bang Energy.
Sponsorship
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
announced on December 1, 2016, a multi-year deal that will make Monster Energy only the third entitlement sponsor in its
premier series history. However, this deal ended after the 2019 race season, and the series will be known as simply the "NASCAR Cup Series" from 2020 onward. The company is expected to continue sponsoring individual drivers, including
Tyler Reddick,
Ty Gibbs and
Riley Herbst into the future. Monster remains a secondary sponsor.
Professional Bull Riders
The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It is the largest bull riding league in the world, sanctioning hundreds of events every yea ...
Unleash the Beast Series carries a Monster Energy sponsorship.
World of Outlaws features the NOS brand as its title sponsor.
AMA Supercross features Monster Energy as its title sponsor.
Finances
For the fiscal year 2017, Monster Beverage reported earnings of US$821 million, with an annual revenue of US$3.369 billion, an increase of 10.5% over the previous fiscal cycle. Monster Beverage's shares traded at over $51 per share, and its market capitalization was valued at US$29.9 billion in November 2018.
Products
*
Monster Energy
Monster Energy is a brand of energy drink, energy drinks that was created
by Hansen Natural Company (now Monster Beverage Corporation) in April 2002. In 2022, Monster Energy had a 30.1% Market share, share of the American energy drink market, th ...
*
Full Throttle
*
NOS
*
Bang Energy
*
Reign
A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., King of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-princes of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kin ...
*
Relentless
*
Mother
A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ges ...
*
Burn
A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ionizing radiation (such as sunburn, caused by ultraviolet radiation). Most burns are due to heat from hot fluids (called scalding), soli ...
* Predator
*
Live+
Live may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film
* ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film
* ''Live'' (2023 film), a Malayalam-language film
*'' Live: Phát Trực Tiếp'', a Vietnamese-langua ...
* True North
Former products
Natural soda
''Natural Soda'' came in twelve flavors: Original Cola, Ginger Ale, Key Lime Twist, Cherry Vanilla Creme, Grapefruit, Kiwi Strawberry, Vanilla Cola, Mandarin Lime, Creamy Root Beer, Raspberry, Mango Orange, and Pomegranate.
All Hansen's sodas are made with
cane sugar
Sucrose, a disaccharide, is a sugar composed of glucose and fructose subunits. It is produced naturally in plants and is the main constituent of white sugar. It has the molecular formula .
For human consumption, sucrose is extracted and refined ...
.
Diet soda
Their ''
Diet Soda
Diet sodas (also known as sugar-free sodas, zero-calorie sodas, low-calorie sodas or zero-sugar sodas) are soft drinks which contain little or no sugar and/or calories. First introduced onto the market in 1949, diet sodas are typically marketed ...
'' was available in ten flavors: Cola, Black Cherry, Peach, Kiwi Strawberry, Vanilla Cherry Crème, Tangerine, Lime, Ginger Ale, Root Beer, Grapefruit, and Pomegranate. Hansen's diet soda is sweetened with
acesulfame potassium
Acesulfame potassium (, or ), also known as acesulfame K or Ace K, is a synthetic calorie-free sugar substitute (artificial sweetener) often marketed under the trade names Sunett and Sweet One. In the European Union, it is known under the E n ...
and
sucralose
Sucralose is an artificial sweetener and sugar substitute. In the European Union, it is also known under the E number E955. It is produced by chlorination of sucrose, selectively replacing three of the hydroxy groups—in the C1 a ...
. All diet sodas are OU Kosher certified.
Drink mixers
Monster Beverage sells three flavors of
soda mixer: Tonic, Ginger Ale, and Club Soda.
Fruit juices
The company sells thirteen fruit juices in 64-ounce
PET
A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive/ cute appearances, inte ...
bottles, several of which are available in smaller bottles for kids. These include Apple, Grape, White Grape, Pineapple, Apple Grape, Apple Strawberry, Orange, Cranberry Apple, Ruby Red Grapefruit, Pomegranate, Organic Apple White Grape, Organic Apple Wild Berry and Organic Apple. These juices contain 120% of the United States Recommended Daily Allowances (USRDA) for Vitamin C (except Pomegranate, which contains 100%).
In 2009, Monster Beverage introduced Hansen's Natural Lo-Cal 64-ounce juice cocktails, in four flavors. They are sweetened with
Truvia.
Hansen's fruit juice smoothies contain approximately 25% juice and provide 100% of the recommended daily adult intake of Vitamins A, C, and E. They are packaged in 11.5-ounce aluminum cans.
Juices for children
Hansen's Juice Blast line of children's juice drinks was launched in conjunction with
Costco
Costco Wholesale Corporation is an American multinational corporation which operates a chain of membership-only big-box warehouse club retail stores. As of 2021, Costco is the third-largest retailer in the world, and as of August 2024, Cos ...
and sold in Costco stores. Hansen also has a Juice Slam line of children's juice drinks. Both lines are sold in 6.75-ounce boxes.
In May 2001, Hansen's acquired the
Junior Juice beverage business. Hansen's Junior Juice is 100% juice, sold in 4.23-ounce cartons and targeted at toddlers and preschoolers. Certain flavors of Junior Juice have calcium added and all flavors contain 100% of the daily recommended allowance of Vitamin C. The brand was introduced in 1991 by
McCain Foods
McCain Foods Limited is a Canadian multinational frozen food company established in 1957 in Florenceville, New Brunswick, Canada.
It is the world's largest manufacturer of frozen potato products, with 1 in 4 french fries in the world being a ...
, and sold to the Pasco Beverage Group in 2000 before being sold again, to Hansen's. Hansen's replaced the original four mascots, Uncle Froggy, Emily the Mouse, Ronald Rabbit, and Nick the Fox, with
Clifford the Big Red Dog
''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' is an American children's book series which focuses on the adventures of an 8-year old blonde haired girl named Emily Elizabeth and her titular pet: a gigantic, red-furred dog named Clifford. It was first published ...
.
In July 2008, Hansen's introduced Hansen's Organic
Junior Water, in 4.23-ounce packages aimed at children between two and six years old. The Hansen's Organic Junior Water line of flavored water contains 100% of the daily recommended allowance of Vitamin C and thirty calories per serving. Also in 2008, organic Junior Water was introduced. Hansen's later introduced Coconut Water Twist, containing
coconut water
Coconut water (also coconut juice) is the clear liquid inside young coconuts (fruits of the coconut palm). In early development, it serves as a suspension for the endosperm of the coconut during the nuclear phase of development. As developm ...
,
and Garden Twist, a combination of fruits and vegetables, which is the only Junior Juice variant to be sold in bottles.
Other beverages
''Smoothies'', ''Rumba Energy Juice,'' ''Energade,'' and ''Energy Formula,'' are minor products. Monster owns
Blue Sky Beverage Company, which manufactures several soft drinks. Monster produces the ''Monster'', ''Lost'', and ''Rumba''
energy drink
An energy drink is a type of non-alcoholic psychoactive functional beverage containing stimulant compounds, usually caffeine (at a higher concentration than ordinary soda pop) and taurine, which is marketed as reducing tiredness and improving pe ...
s, which were previously distributed in the United States by
Anheuser Busch.
In August 2009, Hansen's introduced the SELF Beauty Elixir line, a low-calorie beverage containing vitamins, minerals, natural fruit & botanical extracts, antioxidants and 30% fruit juice. The beverage contains 35 calories and a low amount of sodium per 8-ounce aluminum can.
Signature Soda
Hansen's ''Signature Soda'' line included Black Cherry, Vanilla Cream, Orange Cream,
Ginger Beer, and
Sarsaparilla flavors.
[
]
Natural and diet tea sodas
Hansen's Natural and Diet Soda flavors included: Black Cherry, Tangerine, Tropical, Orange Mango, Peach Mango, Peach, Cherry, Cranberry, Clear Root Beer, Vanilla Coffee, Low Cal Wildberry, Low Cal Cola, and Low Cal Creamy Cola.
In 2006, Hansen's introduced a line of iced teas in 16-ounce PET bottles. Some varieties were sweetened with cane sugar and some were unsweetened. Flavors included Lemon Mint, Pomegranate, Ginger, and Tangerine. There were also three flavors of diet green tea
Green tea is a type of tea made from the leaves and buds of the '' Camellia sinensis'' that have not undergone the withering and oxidation process that creates oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China in the late 1st millenn ...
soda: Lemon Mint, Ginger and Tangerine. Each bottle of tea contained 75 mg of Epigallocatechin gallate
Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), also known as epigallocatechin-3-gallate, is the ester of epigallocatechin and gallic acid, and is a type of catechin.
EGCG – the most abundant catechin in tea – is a polyphenol under basic research for it ...
. Hansen's also made tea bag
A tea bag (or teabag) is a small, porous, sealed bag or Packet (container), packet typically containing tea leaves (''Camellia sinensis'') or the leaves of other herbs, which is immersed in water to steeping, steep and make an infusion. Origina ...
s.
Controversies
In 2018, ''The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'' published an article in which five women accused Monster Beverage of having an abusive and discriminatory culture. Brent Hamilton, then head of music marketing at Monster Energy, had been charged with assault for strangling and biting his girlfriend in 2016, but he wasn't let go until 2019, allegedly for sexual misconduct. Manager Phillip Deitrich regularly humiliated and boycotted a female subordinate in public, and denied her increases in compensation. VP John Kenneally was accused of retaliation, bullying, and sexual harassment. According to three women, he subverted their reputations and forced them to abandon the company. One woman had responded to his advances but suffered nothing but abuse as a consequence of his jealous personality. She was ultimately forced out of the company by Kenneally after objecting to him calling her a "whore". Kenneally was fired two weeks after the article was released. In March 2018, a sixth woman came forward, accusing retired manager Ted Cook of sexual harassment, and claimed being fired for mercurial reasons.
References
External links
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*
{{authority control, state=expanded
Food and drink companies established in 1935
1935 establishments in California
Companies based in Corona, California
Drink companies based in California
Companies that have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1988
1990 initial public offerings