GNC and Shadow Beverages and Snacks Enter into Exclusive Licensing Agreement to Develop New Ready to Drink (RTD) Product Line

By: GNC | 4 Shares 91 Reads

PITTSBURGH, May 23, 2011 // PRNewswire // -- GNC Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: GNC), a leading global specialty retailer of nutritional products, today announced that it has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Shadow Beverages and Snacks, LLC, the producer and distributor of Ironclad Energy + Hydration and No Fear Energy drinks.

Under the terms of the licensing agreement, Shadow Beverages and Snacks will produce a line of Ready to Drink products that it will market under the GNC brand, taking advantage of the reputation for quality and integrity that GNC has developed with consumers.

"This exclusive licensing agreement with Shadow Beverages allows the GNC brand to expand and grow well beyond GNC's own retail and online outlets and service a much broader and more diverse audience of active consumers looking for products to help them live a healthy lifestyle with products they trust," said Tom Dowd EVP of GNC. "GNC will leverage its 75 years of expertise, quality and name recognition to help develop true better-for-you drink lines across multiple categories in the multi-billion-dollar Ready to Drink (RTD) beverage market."

"We are very excited about this relationship with GNC and the opportunity to bring true health and functionality to multiple beverage categories," said Sam Jones, COO of Shadow Beverages. "Coming soon! Look for the best tasting and nutritional ready to drink products with the GNC Live Well label at a retail store near you...GNC LIVE WELL, DRINK WELL."

Shadow Beverages will develop, produce, market and sell drinks under the GNC Live Well trademark for sale across a wide range of retail outlets. These products will be developed and produced in collaboration with GNC and will continue to focus on the strength of the GNC brand, which stands for quality, integrity and trust. It is anticipated that the first products developed under the agreement will go into distribution in the third quarter of 2011.

About Shadow Beverages and Snacks, LLC

Founded in 2008 by two longtime beverage industry executives, Shadow Beverages and Snacks designs, develops and markets beverage products in the functional beverage category space. The range of services offered by Shadow includes Brand Activation (innovation, research and marketing) and Brand Logistics (operations, distribution and sales). The Company's mission is to provide innovative business solutions to partners by providing brand extensions and margin enhancements through the creation of customized functional food and beverage products. For more information about Shadow Beverages and Snacks, please visit www.shadowbev.com. For more information about Ironclad Energy + Hydration, please visit www.ironcladenergy.com.

About GNC Holdings, Inc.

GNC Holdings, Inc., headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., is a leading global specialty retailer of health and wellness products, including vitamins, minerals, and herbal supplement products, sports nutrition products and diet products, and trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "GNC".

As of March 31, 2011, GNC has more than 7,300 locations, of which more than 5,600 retail locations are in the United States (including 895 franchise and 2,029 Rite Aid franchise store-within-a-store locations) and franchise operations in 48 countries (including distribution centers where retail sales are made). The Company – which is dedicated to helping consumers Live Well – is a diversified, multi-channel business model that derives revenue from product sales through company-owned retail stores, domestic and international franchise activities, third party contract manufacturing, e-commerce, and corporate partnerships. Our broad and deep product mix, which is focused on high-margin, premium, value-added nutritional products, is sold under GNC proprietary brands, including Mega Men, Ultra Mega, GNC Wellbeing, Pro Performance, and Longevity Factors, and under nationally recognized third party brands.

SOURCE GNC Holdings, Inc.

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