The Neighborhood Beverage Company (NBC), the parent company of Once Upon a Coconut, has acquired Punch’d Energy, a patented natural caffeine gummy brand founded in 2015. The deal marks NBC’s expansion into the functional energy category, pairing its premium coconut water business with a fast-growing, better-for-you energy product line.
Punch’d Energy is known for pioneering the caffeine gummy category with a patented formula made from green coffee bean caffeine, real superfruit ingredients, and fully natural, organic components. The product line is free from artificial additives, synthetic stimulants, and high-sugar formulations, offering consumers customizable energy intake ranging from 10 milligrams per gummy up to 100 milligrams per pack.
The acquisition brings together Punch’d Energy’s differentiated product format and NBC’s established retail footprint, which includes distribution across more than 6,000 stores nationwide and recent expansion into large-format retailers such as Costco. NBC aims to scale Punch’d through its existing infrastructure and broaden access to clean-label energy alternatives.
Punch’d Energy will now sit alongside Once Upon a Coconut within NBC’s growing portfolio of health-conscious consumer brands. The company is positioning the combined offering around a shared focus on natural ingredients, portability, and personalized consumption.
Founded in 2020, Once Upon a Coconut has built a presence in the hydration market with flavored coconut water sourced from Vietnam and packaged in aluminum cans. The brand also emphasizes a mission-driven approach, donating a portion of profits to nonprofit organizations.
The integration of Punch’d Energy is expected to accelerate NBC’s expansion into adjacent beverage and wellness categories while reinforcing its broader strategy of scaling better-for-you consumer products.
KEY QUOTES
“Punch’d isn’t just a great product, it’s a category-defining one. The idea that energy should be personal, portable, and clean is exactly how we think about hydration. Bringing Punch’d into the OUAC family means we can put the power of real, natural energy into more hands, in more places, at the formats that make sense for how people actually live.”
John Chiorando, CEO of The Neighborhood Beverage Company and Once Upon a Coconut
“Once Upon a Coconut doesn’t just sell products, they build movements. What John Chiorando and this team have done in the coconut water space is exactly what I set out to do with Punch’d: prove that clean, real ingredients can outperform the junk on the shelf every single time. This partnership isn’t the end of the Punch’d story, it’s the chapter where we actually go big. Punch’d has spent ten years building this for the consumer who deserves better, and now we have the platform to reach them.”
John Pinelli, Founder and CEO of Punch’d Energy
