Latest / The DTC Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Direct-to-Consumer Brands, Shopify, and E-Commerce Growth / How Liquid Death Made Canned Water Cool
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's this brand that sells canned water — and last month it hit a valuation of seven hundred million dollars. The name is Liquid Death, and it is essentially the punk rock version of your tap water. Luna: I've seen their cans. They look like a Monster Energy can but for water. Skulls, gothic fonts, 'murder your thirst' written on the side. Lucas: Exactly. And that's the whole point. They turned the most boring commodity in the world — water — into something that feels rebellious. The founder, Mike Cessario, came from the entertainment industry. He worked at Netflix and had a background in punk rock. And he realized that no one had ever marketed water like a lifestyle brand. Luna: But water is water. How do you build a seven-hundred-million-dollar company selling something that comes out of a tap for free? Lucas: You sell the container. You sell the identity. Liquid Death's real product is not the water — it's the can, the attitude, the inside joke. And they executed this with almost surgical precision. Let me give you the playbook they used, because it's actually brilliant. Luna: I'm listening. Where do they start? Lucas: First — they didn't start with a product. They started with a concept. In 2017, Cessario made a cheap video ad that looked like a heavy metal concert for water. It was absurd. A guy screaming 'Liquid Death' over a guitar riff. They put it on Facebook and it went viral. No cans existed yet. Luna: So they validated the idea without spending a dime on manufacturing. Lucas: Correct. They got millions of views, then launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo. They raised over one hundred thousand dollars in pre-orders before they ever filled a single can. That's the DTC dream — get paid before you have inventory. Luna: And the early adopters weren't buying water — they were buying a sticker, a shirt, a sense of belonging. Lucas: Exactly. The crowdfunding rewards were mostly merch. A t-shirt, a sticker pack, a flag. The water was almost secondary. That flipped the traditional DTC funnel. Normally you sell a product and then try to build a community. Liquid Death built the community first and then sold the product. Luna: And the community ate it up because the brand made them feel like they were in on a joke. The whole thing was so over-the-top that it worked. Lucas: Yeah. And they never broke character. Every single touchpoint — the website, the emails, the social media — uses the same death-metal lexicon. They call their customers 'citizens.' They say 'hail the liquid death.' It's consistent. Luna: But at some point you have to actually sell water. How did they get distribution? Lucas: This is the part I find most interesting. They didn't try to go into grocery stores next to Poland Spring. They went into convenience stores and gas stations — next to Red Bull and Monster. They wanted to be the alternative to sugary energy drinks, not just another water. Luna: That's a total Trojan horse move. The buyer walks in for a Monster, sees a can that looks similar, picks it up, and it's water. Lucas: And it's zero calories, zero sugar, zero nonsense. They literally call it 'death to plastic' because the cans are infinitely recyclable. But they never hammer the sustainability angle like a guilt trip. It's always framed as a joke. Luna: I've noticed that. Most eco-friendly brands make you feel bad about your choices. Liquid Death makes you feel cool for choosing aluminum. Lucas: That's a key lesson. They understand that shame doesn't convert. Humor does. Their social media is full of memes, fake product announcements, parody videos. One of their most popular posts was a fake energy drink called 'Baby Death' — a sippy cup for toddlers. It's ridiculous. Luna: And people share that stuff because it's funny. It's free advertising. Lucas: So they've built this entire machine on the back of organic reach. They spend very little on paid ads relative to their revenue. In 2022, they generated over one hundred and thirty million dollars in revenue with a marketing spend that was maybe ten percent of that. Luna: But here's where I push back a little. How much of this is repeatable? Can any DTC brand just be 'funny' and 'rebellious' and expect to win? Lucas: No. And that's the important caveat. Liquid Death's tone works because it's authentic to the founder. Mike Cessario actually lived that punk rock culture. If a corporate brand tried to copy it, it would feel hollow. The lesson isn't 'be edgy' — it's 'find a tone that only you can own.' Luna: So what's the risk for Liquid Death now? Seven hundred million dollars is a high bar. Lucas: The biggest risk is that the joke gets old. Every viral brand faces a half-life. Eventually the novelty wears off and you need to prove you're a real business with real repeat purchases. They're expanding into flavored sparkling water, even iced tea. But they have to be careful not to dilute the brand. Luna: And there's competition now. Big beverage companies are watching. Pepsi and Coca-Cola could launch their own 'rebellious' water brands. Lucas: They could. But Liquid Death has a head start on community. They have over two million followers on Instagram and a fan base that genuinely defends the brand online. That's a moat. Not an unbreachable one, but a moat. Luna: So for a DTC founder listening right now, what's the one concrete takeaway? Lucas: Don't compete on the product. Compete on the story. Liquid Death sells water — the most commoditized product on earth. But because they wrapped it in a story that resonates, they charge a premium and people feel good about buying it. If you can't articulate your story in one sentence, you don't have one yet. Luna: And maybe don't take yourself too seriously either. Lucas: That helps. But the seriousness has to be in the execution. Their supply chain, their can design, their distribution — all of that is dead serious. The humor is the wrapping, not the product. Luna: Fair point. So if Liquid Death keeps growing at this pace, are we looking at a billion-dollar exit? Or an IPO? Lucas: I'd bet on an IPO within three years. They've already raised money from investors like Live Nation and Bert Kreischer. The infrastructure is there. The question is whether they can scale the brand without losing the subculture feel. Luna: Big brands lose that all the time. Look at what happened to GoPro. Lucas: Right. GoPro was the cool action camera, then they tried to be everything to everyone and lost their edge. Liquid Death's management seems aware of that trap. They've turned down licensing deals that didn't fit the brand. That discipline might be their secret weapon. Luna: So to wrap up — canned water, heavy metal, and a seven-hundred-million-dollar valuation. Who knew? Lucas: The lesson is that category creation is still possible if you're willing to look a little ridiculous at first. The question for every DTC founder is: what's your absurd but true story?