Photo by Jesper Brouwers on Unsplash 

As one of the biggest brands in the world, you might think that owning shares in energy drinks company Red Bull is a great investment.

It might shock you to know, then, that it is not possible to own Red Bull stock.

Red Bull is a multinational company with a hand in several industries including beverage, sports, music, travel, and media. With about a 42% share of the global energy drinks market, it is the world’s most popular energy drink brand.

But behind every success, there is a struggle story. Things didn’t start exactly like this for Red Bull and the company faced several struggles and obstacles along the way.

In this article, we’ll look at the story behind Red Bull’s success and why you can’t trade its shares.

How Red Bull was founded

Red Bull is a privately-owned company that is widely popular for its energy drinks and ownership of sports teams.

The company, which is registered in Austria as Red Bull GmbH, was founded in 1987 by Dietrich Mateschitz, who still serves as its CEO.

The Red Bull energy drink was initially created in 1976 by Chaleo Yoovidhya in Thailand as a product known as Krating Daeng (which translates to “red bull”). Yoovidhya made the drink to help construction and transportation workers remain alert on the job.

During a business trip to Thailand in 1984, Mateschitz tried the drink, which helped him overcome his jet lag and led him to seek and ultimately receive from Yoovidhya the go-ahead to start a separate company in Austria that would oversee sales of the drink globally.

The Red Bull energy drink contains caffeine, sugars, Alpine water, B-group vitamins, and an (an amino acid called taurine.

As of December 2021, Red Bull GmbH had just over 13,600 employees in 171 countries, with 9.804 billion cans of energy drinks being sold worldwide.

Mateschitz has also assembled a media and sports empire. Red Bull GmbH owns professional rugby, hockey, basketball, and soccer teams in the U.S. and Europe.

The company sponsors Formula 1 and Nascar teams. It also sponsors athletes in extreme sports such as aerobatic flying and cliff diving.

Red Bull’s philosophy throughout its sporting empire is to create brand awareness for its energy drink and also to increase revenue.

Red Bull shareholders

Mateschitz owns 49% of Red Bull, making him the biggest shareholder in the energy drink franchise.

The rest of the company is shared among 11 members of Yoovidhya’s family. The remaining 2% belongs to Yoovidhya’s eldest son, Chalerm. Yoovidhya passed away in 2012 at the age of 88.

Mateschitz is estimated to have amassed a $27.5 billion fortune, making him the richest person in Austria and among the 60 richest people in the world, according to data compiled by Forbes magazine.

Can you trade Red Bull shares?

Unfortunately, you can’t buy or sell Red Bull shares. Given that it is a privately-owned company, there is no Red bull stock.

The company has avoided offering its shares to the public probably due to its size and the number of assets it owns.

Red Bull’s revenue stream and its superb promotions and marketing activities have greatly helped the company to operate without needing to seek capital from public markets.

Luckily, the company does have some rivals who are publicly traded companies.

Alternatives to buying Red Bull stock

Since you can’t join them, you can’t always try to beat them at their own game. Why don’t you purchase shares in their rival companies, Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), PepsiCo (Nasdaq: PEP), and Monster Beverage Corp (Nasdaq: MNST)?

Let’s take a look at these companies

Coca-Cola (KO)

Coca-Cola is the world’s largest nonalcoholic beverage company and its numbers look good! The company owns and markets some of the leading non-sparkling and carbonated brands.

Some of its most popular brands include Coke, Sprite, PowerAde, Dasani, and Smartwater. In 2021, Coca-Cola made $38.66 billion in net revenues and currently has a market capitalization of $266.77 billion.

However, its namesake sodas and other drinks experienced sluggish growth at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic as restaurants and offices shut down.

PepsiCo (PEP)

PepsiCo – Coca-Cola’s biggest competitor – reported net revenue of $79.5 billion and earnings of $7.618 billion in 2021.

The company, which was founded more than 120 years ago, has grown tremendously to become a brand that makes drinks and snacks.

With a market cap of about $220 billion, PepsiCo ties its success to its portfolio of brands that include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Lay’s, Quaker Oats, Gatorade, Doritos, and SodaStream.

Like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo’s sodas and other drinks were also hurt by the closure of restaurants and offices during the Covid-19 pandemic.

But its food business, which includes products such as Cheetos Mac ’N Cheese and Tostitos, greatly benefited as consumers cooked and snacked more at home.

Monster Beverage (MNST)

Monster Energy has been one of the top-performing stocks on Wall Street in the last three decades.

The company makes, markets, and sells a variety of energy drinks to customers across the globe. Its product portfolio includes Monster Energy drink, sports drinks, espresso drinks, flavored drinks, and other energy drinks.

Monster operates within a space called the “alternative” beverage category that includes cocktails, coffee drinks, fruit beverages, iced teas, and others.

Wholesale revenues for this category stood at $60.5 billion at the end of 2020, according to the company. Like its rivals, Monster also advertises its energy brands via image-enhancement programs developed mostly through sporting events.

Bottom Line

Many on Wall Street think Red Bull shares would be one to own if they were available to the general investing public.

Red Bull is one of the companies in the energy drink industry that have adopted an unordinary approach and completely different strategy. It is well known that the industry is extremely competitive, and there is a clear reason why only a few companies hold a significant market share.

If Red Bull ever lists its shares, there is a high chance it could do even better. But so far, the only individual set up to profit from the company in the near future will be its owners.

But even though Red Bull stock does not exist, you can still trade shares in Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Monster, and other rivals on the open market.