Poppi soda company is getting absolutely dragged on TikTok over vending machines, but why?

A US-based soda company called Poppi is currently getting dragged on TikTok for their out-of-touch influencer marketing campaign which revolved around vending machines.

But why exactly is the company getting slammed so badly online? Let’s explain the whole thing from the start.

Poppi is a US-based alternative soda brand that has used influencers to help boost sales for years, typically by sending crates full of their drinks products.

Ahead of the Super Bowl, the company sent out huge vending machines filled with all of their different sodas and drinks to various high-profile influencers.

@kaelimaee

an actual DREAM OMG💞🍓🍋🍒 can’t wait for the super bowl 👏🏼🏈🤍 @Drink Poppi #poppi #poppivendingmachine #vendingmachine #superbowl #viral #hosting

♬ som original – gui

However, this move quickly gained serious backlash as those on TikTok questioned why Poppi had sent the vending machines to wealthy influencers and not those who could genuinely benefit from them.

One wrote: “I hope they deliver these vending machines to hospitals, schools, shelters and libraries.” Another added: “This is cool but I wish Poppi was sending this [to] its customers like teachers, nurses, etc.”

scrolling on tiktok just to see Poppi send vending machines full of soda cans for free to rich people is crazy, why do rich people deserve free things???

like ONE can of these sodas is like almost $3

shame on you!!! @drinkpoppi pic.twitter.com/Cy4OP5eSco

— ileana ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡⋆ (@zukorra) February 9, 2025

Following the backlash, Allison the CEO of Poppi address the controversy against the vending machines in a TikTok video.

She stated: “I’ve been hearing a lot of negativity, so I wanted to get on here and chat with you guys directly. First of all, I want to say, I hear you, and there’s been a lot of misinformation being spread out there by one of our competitors.”

The misinformation in question was spread by one of Poppi’s soda rivals called Olipop who claimed that each vending machine cost $25k, something Allison then stated “is not what it cost, that is not true.”

@drinkpoppi

we love our poppi community 🩷 tell us where they should go next 👇

♬ original sound – Drink Poppi

She continued, directly addressing the criticism surrounding why the vending machines couldn’t have gone to other locations.

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She explained: “This vending machine campaign was put into place to bring awareness to the biggest soda moment of the year—the Super Bowl.

“We wanted to share Poppi with creators across the US who were hosting Super Bowl parties for their friends and their families. Creator marketing has always been a staple of Poppi’s brand since we launched in 2020.”

She ended her statement by acknowledging that “the community” has always been the “biggest part” of the company’s success. She admitted “we can always learn and do better” and added that she “appreciates” and “hears” the community and its criticism.

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