BOCA RATON, FLA. — Celsius Holdings, Inc. has hired PepsiCo, Inc. executive Eric Hanson to its newly created role of president and chief operating officer, effective March 24.

“We are thrilled to welcome Eric to Celsius during an exciting time for the company as we continue to advance our compelling growth strategy to reach more people, in more places, more often,” said John Fieldly, chairman and chief executive officer of Celsius. “Eric is a proven leader with a wealth of expertise, positioning him well to drive strategic collaboration among our seasoned teams and to lead the integration and optimization of our acquisitions. I know Eric closely from our partnership with PepsiCo, and this appointment supports our vision to be a high-growth leader and deliver the greatest value to our consumers and shareholders.”

Hanson held his tenure with PepsiCo since 1997, when he joined the company in a sales position.

He most recently was senior vice president of strategic partnerships at PepsiCo. In this position, Hanson worked with such PepsiCo partners as Celsius, Keurig Dr Pepper and Tropicana Brands.

He held various leadership positions, including vice president consumer value, vice president general manager, senior vice president, revenue management and beverage tax policy, senior vice president of PepsiCo’s energy beverage unit among others.

While he was senior vice president of PepsiCo’s energy beverage unit, Hanson helped integrate the Rockstar Energy Beverages business into PepsiCo following the nearly $4 billion acquisition in 2020, according to the company.

PepsiCo acquired an 8.5% ownership stake in Celsius Holdings, Inc. for $550 million in August 2022.