Who Owns 7UP?

7UP is an American lemon-lime drink brand based in Plano, Texas, and Purchase, New York. The 7UP formula was created in 1929 by Charles Leiper Grigg, who founded The Howdy Corporation in 1920.

7UP was originally named Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda and contained lithium citrate, a mood-stabilizing drug. In 1936, Bib-Label Lithiated was rebranded as 7Up and became part of pop culture. [1]

7UP is one of the world’s leading beverage brands. It offers lemon-lime–flavored soft drinks with no caffeine. In Feb 2023, 7UP unveiled a new brand identity to reinforce its uplifting nature. The rebranding includes a refreshing redesign for 7UP and 7UP Zero Sugar bottles and cans.

The company strengthened its international positioning to add UPliftment moments to the every day and launched a multi-touchpoint comedy-centric campaign across static, motion, and digital assets in Mar 2023. [2]

7UP is known for its iconic green brand color. Its 2023 rebranding maintained the signature green and added zesty citrus tones to create a vibrant and uplifting new design. In Jun 2023, 7UP unveiled its renewed marketing strategy for the summer campaign.

The move comes after the brand failed to zero in on the Gen Z demographic by leaning into its nostalgia and vintage, which resonates with younger consumers. The new strategy targets both Gen Z and Millennials. But who owns 7UP? [3]

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Who is 7up’s Parent Company?

7UP has a unique two-pronged ownership structure. The US 7UP is owned by Keurig Dr Pepper, while 7UP International is a PepsiCo subsidiary. Keurig Dr Pepper is an American beverage company based in Plano, Texas, and was founded in 2018 after Keurig Green Mountain acquired and merged with Dr Pepper Snapple Group. As of Sep 2023, Keurig Dr Pepper had 28,000 employees. [4]

Keurig Dr Pepper owns several brands, including Keurig coffee machines, Dr Pepper, 7UP, Crush, Van Houtte, and Canada Dry. The company seeks to challenge leaders Coca-Cola and PepsiCo in the soft drink market. In Dec 2022, Keurig Dr. Pepper acquired a 30% stake in the beverage brand Nutrabolt for $863 million. The company also invested $50 million in Athletic Brewing Company. [5]

PepsiCo is a multinational food, snack, and soft drink corporation founded in 1965 and based in Purchase, Harrison, New York. The parent company distributes 7UP internationally. It also owns iconic brands that generate over $1 billion each annually, including Mountain Dew, Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker, SodaStream, Tropicana, and Mirinda. In Jan 2024, French retail giant Carrefour removed PepsiCo and 7up products from its supermarket. The move came after PepsiCo’s price hikes. [6]

PepsiCo is America’s second most valuable beverage company, with a $230 billion market cap after Coca-Cola at around $245 billion. Coca-Cola has outperformed PepsiCo in the US for decades.

However, the over-100-year-old rivalry is about to take a turn. In Nov 2023, Wall Street analysts predicted that PepsiCo’s shares would increase by 20% to about $279 billion market cap in a year. PepsiCo can surpass Coca-Cola, becoming America’s most valuable beverage company. [7]

PepsiCo manufactures, distributes, and markets its foods, snacks, and beverages globally. Its products are served over one billion times daily across over 200 countries. In Oct 2023, PepsiCo announced price hikes after raising its 2023 profit forecast for a third time. The move comes as consumer goods firms and countries push for price cuts to rein in inflation. [8]

Image Credit Daniel — Image Credit: Daniel

7UP’s Ownership History

Charles Leiper Grigg was the original owner and creator of the 7UP formula. Grigg’s Howdy Corporation marketed 7UP under Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda before shortening the name to 7UP Lithiated Lemon Soda. The brand’s popularity peaked in the 1970s after it launched the Uncola ad campaign. This marketing initiative cemented 7UP’s position as a refreshing alternative to Coke and Pepsi. [9]

7UP was privately owned for around 58 years. In 1978, the founding families sold 7UP to Philip Morris. The new owner split 7UP into US and global divisions. In 1986, Philip Morris sold the US 7UP business to a group led by Hicks & Haas. PepsiCo acquired the global 7UP division.

The US 7UP merged with Dr. Pepper in 1988 to form Dr. Pepper/7UP Inc. [10]

PepsiCo retained ownership of 7UP International since 1986. However, the US 7UP business changed hands several times. Dr Pepper/7UP Inc. rebranded to Dr Pepper Snapple Group. Then, Cadbury Schweppes acquired Dr Pepper Snapple Group in 1995.

Cadbury Schweppes changed 7UP’s formula in 1997 to revitalize the brand and catalyze its growth. The parent company refined 7UP’s lemon-lime flavor blend to boost its competitive advantage over Sprite. However, the changes didn’t improve 7UP’s stagnated sales.

In 2008, Cadbury Schweppes spun off the Dr Pepper Snapple Group with Dr Pepper and 7UP brands. The business operated independently for 10 years. In 2018, Dr Pepper Snapple Group merged with Keurig Green Mountain to form Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP). As of Aug 2023, KDP was America’s third-largest soft drink brand after Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. [11]

Image Credit Clay Elliot — Image Credit: Clay Elliot

7UP’s Shareholder Structure

The US 7UP and 7UP International operate separately under Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo. Each 7UP division has a unique shareholder structure. As of 2023, PepsiCo’s shareholders held 1,866,785,980 Stock A shares with one vote. This figure includes 1,372,635,982 free-float shares and 492,000,000 company-owned shares. [12]

PepsiCo’s top 25 shareholders own 41% of the company. As of Nov 2023, institutional investors held a 74% stake in PepsiCo. The company’s shareholder structure includes the general public with 26% ownership. This group comprises individual investors. Insiders own less than 1% of PepsiCo and hold around $320 million of stock. [13]

PepsiCo’s 4582 institutional investors and shareholders hold 1,104,647,008 shares. These institutions have filed 13D/G or 13F forms with the US SEC. As of Feb 2024, The Vanguard Group was PepsiCo’s largest shareholder with 9.5% shares, followed by BlackRock at 6.24% and State Street Global Advisors at 4.2%.

Other top shareholders include Geode Capital, Morgan Stanley, Invesco Trust, Bank of America, and JPMorgan Chase. [14]

The US 7UP operates under Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP). As of 2023, KDP had 1,355,574,275 authorized Stock A shares with one vote. This figure includes 1,009,897,616 free-float shares. The company’s shareholder structure has institutions, insiders, and individual investors from the general public. [15]

Keurig Dr Pepper has 1502 institutional shareholders who have filed 13D/G or 13F forms with the US SEC. They hold 1,132,210,190 shares. As of Feb 2024, Maple Holdings BV was Keurig Dr Pepper’s largest shareholder, with 21% of the company.

This stake represents 283,443,879 shares. Capital Research is PepsiCo’s second-largest shareholder with 7.7%, followed by The Vanguard Group at 5.94%, BlackRock at 5.8%, and Mondelez International at 3.24%. [16]

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