PepsiCo has prevailed in a distribution dispute with the maker of Bang Energy drinks that will leave it as Bang’s exclusive distributor through October 2023.
VPX Sports, the parent company of Bang Energy, was trying to get out of a distribution deal it made with PepsiCo in April. It brought the dispute before an arbitrator while declaring that its CEO was “blindsided and bamboozled” in the PepsiCo deal. The arbitrator, however, ruled in PepsiCo’s favor, ordering VPX executives to stop making disparaging comments about PepsiCo or claiming that the deal is no longer valid.
“We are pleased with the arbitrator’s emergency order that clarifies PepsiCo remains the exclusive distributor of Bang products in the United States until October 2023,” PepsiCo said in a statement. “This order upholds the importance and enforceability of distributor agreements and reaffirms the high standard of integrity to which we hold ourselves and expect of our partners.”
