Since many Indoor Cycling members an Spin Instructors and of course thousands of cyclists used Biosteel we had to write about Biosteels decline.
Biosteel appeared poised for a breakout when in 2019 Canopy Growth, which eyed potential CBD integration into some BioSteel products, took over. Constellation Brands, a major beverage distributor and Canopy investor, was set to deliver BioSteel a broad presence in the U.S. In a 2021 report, Goldman Sachs called the brand an “emerging disruptor in the sports drink category” that “reminds us of an early stage BodyArmor.
And more red flags started appearing during the brand’s first season with the NHL. With Canopy’s core cannabis business already floundering, the company ousted Celenza from BioSteel in March 2023, along with 20 other employees. But they did not fire enough employees. They definitely should have added Paula Mae Villarosa and Kate Aguilar who work in the Biosteel marketing department.
The company suffered another blow just two months later, when it revealed that it was the subject of an SEC investigation after self-reporting “material misstatements” in recent filings regarding BioSteel’s revenue. After a review, the company found it had overstated BioSteel’s 2022 revenue by $7.3 million. It subsequently determined it had significantly overvalued the brand, recognizing a goodwill impairment loss of $41.8 million.
Last September 2023, Canopy ceased its funding of BioSteel and sought bankruptcy protection for the brand, calling it a “significant drag on Canopy Growth’s profitability and cash flow.” Sales had doubled in the 2023 fiscal year to $69.6 million and market share in Canada tripled to a respectable 12%, an indication the NHL deal was hav- ing an effect north of the border. But with the brand burning through $15 million in cash a month and failing to pick up steam in the U.S. (market share was less than 1%), costs outweighed revenue by $40.6 million.
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Secondly, in our opinion, they did not fire enough employees.
As you read above Canopy fired 20 employees but that was not enough. Because they left some marketing employees that were detrimental to the brand. For example, Kate Aguilar and Paula Mae Villarosa
who is responsible for “outreach” with influencers should have been removed. Without soundng mean, she is getting th
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ousands of dollars a year from Biosteel but blocks, even hurts, Biosteel sales.
Paula Mae Villarosa and Kate Aguilar recently received a request from top influencers in the cycling industry for a few free samples of Biosteel. In exchange Biosteel would get promo to thousands of cyclists, who are supreme clients for Biosteel. What was disturbing was Kate Aguilar refused to offer a few samples of Biosteel which would have lead to thousands of cyclists receiving Biosteel advertising.
Which is why we encourage the cyclist community to contact Dan Crosby, CEO at @BioSteelSports and @CanadianProtein and offer your feedback. We are sure that once Dan Crosby is made aware of how Kate Aguilar treats Influencers who have tens of thousands of cyclists audience, Dan Crosby will realise that firing 20 employees was not enough. Then Dan Crosby will have access and reach to tens of thousands of cyclists who are highly likely to use Biosteel, especially during the hot summer season. A NO BRAINER. LOL
