US soft-drinks supplier Golden Grail Beverages has appointed another interim CEO.
Chief revenue officer Russ Kaffenberger has taken on the role, following on from Steven Hoffman, who is leaving to “focus on other ventures outside of the beverage industry”, the company said in a statement.
Kaffenberger was Golden Grail Beverages’ chief revenue officer for a year after joining the business in 2022. His career includes eight years at Monster Beverage Corp.
Just Drinks has approached the company, which owns brands including Koz Water and Sway Energy, to ask if it has any plans to name a permanent chief executive.
In a statement, Golden Grail Beverages, which holds the manufacturing licence for Spider energy drinks, said it would expand its board “to include esteemed beverage industry experts”, without providing further details.
The statement read: “This strategic move to create a new board of directors aims to harness the members’ collective experience and insights to guide Golden Grail Beverages toward growth and success in the competitive beverage market.”
Hoffman added in the statement: “This transition is a strategic step in Golden Grail Beverages’ journey, reflecting the company’s upward growth trajectory and the need for experienced leadership in the beverage sector.”
The news of Kaffenberger’s appointment was issued on 22 December. Four days earlier, the company said an audit of its accounts for its 2021 and 2022 fiscal years had been “successfully” completed.
The audit, the business said, was done to “pave the way” for the company to “strategise its process and timing for transition to a fully reporting company with the SEC and focus on its near-term fundraising plans”.
In the nine months to the end of September, Golden Grail Beverages generated sales of $354,946 but a loss at the gross profit level of $63,008. It ran up a loss of operations of $2.1m and a net loss of $2.7m.
In a statement announcing the results, Golden Grail Beverages said it had “negative cash flows from operations and … a working capital deficit of $3,565,262” at 30 September.
“These factors raise substantial doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern,” the statement read.
“The company’s ability to continue existence is dependent upon management’s ability to develop and achieve profitable operations and/or upon obtaining additional financing to carry out its planned business. However, there can be no assurance that these arrangements will be sufficient to fund its ongoing capital expenditures, working capital, and other cash requirements. The outcome of these matters cannot be predicted at this time.”
