Dive Summary:
- SodaStream is the maker of a product that uses re-fillable and re-sealable containers that allow consumers to make soda in their home.
- Daniel Birnbaum, Soda Stream's CEO, has been quite outspoken about his intentions of butting into the soft drink market, disrupting the two companies that have a monopoly on the industry: Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.
- He claims that the old soft drink business model has reached an impasse, allowing innovative companies to start chipping away at a previously impervious market.
From the article:
LONDON—It is rare for a chief executive to openly discuss the operations and behavior of rival companies. But Daniel Birnbaum is frank about his mission to fizz up the duopoly that is the multi-billion-dollar global carbonated drinks market.
"[Coca-Cola Co. KO +0.22% and PepsiCo Inc. PEP -0.04% ] will have to face the reality that their business model cannot be preserved forever. The world is changing and we're going to call it out," says the CEO of SodaStream SODA -1.59% .
The company markets a device that uses a return-and-replace system of pressurized carbon dioxide gas cylinders for turning tap water into soda water, which then can be flavored by an array of syrups from root beer to ginger ale. This do-it-yourself approach to fizzy drinks is a very far cry from the massive bottling and distribution operations of the Big Two.