Liquid I.V. hires former Poppi CMO to elevate communications
Jenny Danzi's CMO appointment adds communications to a culture-led marketing brief, putting the role of PR in brand planning under scrutiny.
Liquid I.V., the Unilever-owned hydration brand, has appointed Jenny Danzi as chief marketing officer, putting an experienced beverage marketer in charge of its next phase of brand building. The appointment was reported on October 27, 2026, in an Axios interview that also outlined a notable part of her remit: communications.
Danzi previously led marketing for Poppi, following a long career at PepsiCo. At Liquid I.V., her brief extends beyond running campaigns. She wants communications to contribute to marketing decisions from the outset, rather than being brought in after a creative direction has already been chosen. The distinction gives this leadership move particular relevance for in-house PR teams and agency partners.
Key Takeaways
- Liquid I.V. appointed former Poppi CMO Jenny Danzi, whose new brief also includes communications.
- Danzi wants communications involved in shaping marketing strategy, not just publicizing campaigns.
- PR teams can apply that principle by joining briefs early and separating short-term visibility from lasting customer advocacy.
Table of contents
Jump to each section:
- Communications gets a place in the planning process
- A consumer brand already active in culture-led marketing
- The hire comes during a more competitive growth phase
- What PR teams can take from Danzi's brief
Communications gets a place in the planning process
Danzi will oversee communications as well as marketing, according to Axios. In the interview, she said, “Communications should be a pillar of every marketing leadership team.” Her argument is that the function should help develop the brief instead of serving only as a channel for distributing it.
The responsibilities attached to her new role help explain why that matters. Adweek reported that Danzi is taking charge of marketing, creative and consumer teams. The company's stated aim is to connect its scientific product positioning with brand building informed by consumer culture.
That is a statement of intent, not evidence of a completed reorganization. The available announcement does not specify reporting lines for PR staff, agency contracts or a new budget. It does establish that communications is part of how Danzi is discussing Liquid I.V.'s growth strategy.
A consumer brand already active in culture-led marketing
Liquid I.V. has not been waiting for a new CMO to experiment with entertainment and sport. Its recent work includes a Spider-Man: Brand New Day tie-in and a McLaren Racing campaign featuring Formula 1 drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, as detailed by Marketing Dive.
The Spider-Man partnership integrated a hydration message into film-related creative and limited-edition products. The McLaren initiative linked the brand to sports culture while promoting a sugar-free product variant. These are examples of the mix of partnerships already available to Danzi as she considers how to translate the brand's functional positioning into an audience conversation.
Her experience at Poppi also matters because that brand built visibility around consumer culture and a recognizable personality. Liquid I.V.'s challenge is different in its specific products and audience relationships, so reproducing an earlier employer's marketing tactics would not by itself answer how this brand should grow. The new role gives her an opportunity to test which stories customers actively share rather than simply view.
The hire comes during a more competitive growth phase
The appointment arrives as Liquid I.V. faces growing competition in hydration products, including private-label alternatives. In the Axios interview, Danzi discussed turning satisfied users into advocates and making the science behind the product meaningful in everyday consumer terms.
Liquid I.V. is also filling a leadership vacancy. Former CMO Stacey Andrade-Wells left in July to join Bobbie as chief growth officer, according to Brand Innovators. The change is a substantive executive succession, but the commercial impact of Danzi's appointment has not yet been reported.
The underlying communications question is whether the company can consistently generate stories that customers want to pass along, beyond attention generated by individual partnerships. That cannot be measured from the hiring announcement alone.
What PR teams can take from Danzi's brief
Bring communications into brief development. If a new product or partnership is being planned, the communications lead should be part of the first discussion about the audience, evidence and story. A team that joins only after an ad is finished has less room to identify a credible earned-media angle.
Separate visibility from advocacy. A one-off creator collaboration may generate widespread exposure, but a sustained relationship requires follow-up content and reasons for consumers to recommend the brand. Danzi has explicitly identified that distinction in discussing creator partnerships. PR teams should specify whether a proposed program is meant to generate a short campaign burst or develop ongoing advocates.
Keep claims tied to the product. For a hydration brand, science-based positioning brings a need for careful substantiation. Communications and legal reviewers need to assess claims before they appear in creator briefs or publicity, so that culture-led storytelling does not outpace supporting evidence.
For agency partners, the practical test is whether client communications leaders are involved early enough to influence the work. Danzi's comments suggest an ambition for closer integration at Liquid I.V., but no specific agency changes have been announced.
