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A Letter to Ricky Khetarpaul · CFO, Liquid Death

Why This
Belongs With You

Craig Rose — Founder, Spiritual Plants

I've been watching Liquid Death long before it became a billion-dollar company.

Back when I was on Warped Tour with August Burns Red, I remember looking around in the middle of summer and seeing everyone drinking what looked like tallboys of beer.

Except it wasn't beer. It was water.

That moment stuck with me. One of those rare ideas that made you stop and think, "Of course. Why didn't anyone do this before?"

Years later, while building Ascension Pop-Up on Abbot Kinney, a friend told us,

"You should call Liquid Death. They'll send water to anything interesting — interesting on this street, Abbot Kinney."

Because Abbot Kinney in Venice is one of the weirdest, most influential streets in the country.

We reached out. A week later, two full pallets of Liquid Death arrived. No complicated sponsorship. No bureaucracy. Just a brand that understood culture.

We have the photos.

Venice Pop-Ups · 2022 & 2023 → nolangross.com
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Then something interesting happened. Shortly afterward, other beverage companies started reaching out on their own. Ape Water showed up. Other brands followed. We weren't asking for them. They wanted to be associated with what we were building.

That taught me something important.

Great brands don't simply advertise. They become part of culture.

Since then, I've watched Liquid Death evolve from water into something much bigger.

  • Sparkling water
  • Flavored water
  • Iced teas
  • Electrolytes
  • Energy
  • Merchandise
  • Festivals
  • Comedy
  • Content
  • Partnerships

Every expansion has followed the same philosophy.

Liquid Death isn't a beverage company. It's an entertainment company that happens to monetize through beverages.

I've seen the festival installations. I've watched the brand take over Bonnaroo and countless other events. The Death Certificates. The merch. The collaborations. The internet break over campaign after campaign.

The genius was never the product.

The genius was changing what water meant.

Today, we're represented by Post Oak Group as we explore strategic opportunities. One of the first questions we've been asked is simple:

"What house does Holy Water belong in?"

For me, the answer has always been obvious. If there's one company that understands how to build mythology around water…

It's Liquid Death.

Not because Holy Water is another beverage. Not because it's another hemp product. Because I believe we're building something that expands the emotional universe you've already created.

Liquid Death transformed hydration into rebellion. Holy Water transforms hydration into ritual.

Those aren't competing ideas. They're complementary ones.

This isn't a product pitch. It's a value-creation proposal — a capital-efficient way to expand the emotional portfolio and margin pool of a platform you're already scaling toward profitability.

Holy Water is transaction-ready: formula, packaging, and go-to-market built to plug into existing infrastructure without the drag of a from-scratch build.

The question isn't whether ritual becomes a category. The question is whether Liquid Death owns it — and whether we build it together.

Craig Rose

Founder, Spiritual Plants / Holy Water

The pages that follow explain why this is the perfect collision.