Social Rocket
A social media meme can become a development brief for Poppi. The drinks brand turned a spontaneous reaction to the US reality show Love Island into a limited product collaboration – within twelve weeks. In October 2026, Poppi's cultural lead Sophia Sesto describes a marketing organisation that first looks at existing community enthusiasm and from it develops campaigns, creator collaborations and sometimes even new products.
From 250.000 Likes to the Limited Can
The starting point was 2025 a post in the orbit of Love Island USA and participant Amaya Espinal. According to Sesto, it reached more than 250.000 likes; 90 percent of the reached accounts did not follow Poppi beforehand. The brand then deepened the collaboration and developed a limited offer within twelve weeks. 2026 followed a licensed can, an integration into the show and further activations with cast members.
The order here is decisive: Poppi did not first commission a big advert and then look for suitable fans. The team spotted a reaction from its target audience, tested the response publicly and used it as the starting point for product and distribution.
The example comes from a Marketing Dive interview with Sophia Sesto of the 5. October 2026. It fits a development we have already examined at challenger brands and established brands: speed becomes a competitive advantage when the brand consistently stays recognisable.
Fashion Week, NFL and Super Bowl Share the Same Thread
In September 2026, Poppi was present at New York Fashion Week with eight designers – from drinks at shows to fashion collaborations. In parallel, the brand is opening up new social media contexts via the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. The formats differ greatly, but they serve communities in which the brand can already become a topic of conversation.
Larger campaigns also follow this logic. For the Super Bowl in February, Poppi released the spot "Make it poppi" with Charli xcx and Rachel Sennott, as PepsiCo officially documents. Similar long-term connections between musicians, events and brand work are shown in our article on Charli xcx and Absolut.
Why PepsiCo Doesn't Smooth Over the Culture Department
PepsiCo acquired Poppi in May 2025 for 1,95 billion US dollars. As a result, the brand gains more distribution power but, according to Sesto, retains room for manoeuvre in cultural decisions. One visible result: since March 2026, Poppi has also been selling in the UK and is using local media and retail partners there.
The business side is part of the picture: according to Beverage Digest data cited by Marketing Dive, Poppi's sales volume in US retail fell by 2026 3,6 percent in the first half. Culture campaigns with broad reach and demand must therefore be measured separately.
What German Social Teams Can Take On
Three building blocks are transferable: first, observe genuine community signals in comments and fan formats. Then involve creators in a way that creates a shared cultural moment rather than an interchangeable sponsored post. Finally, evaluate success on two levels – voluntary sharing and business results such as retailer sell-through or repeat purchases.
For implementation, our overview of influencer measurement and contracts is worth a look: intuition can spark ideas, but reliable measurement shows which of them hold up in the long run.