Honey Stinger’s newest hire, Chief Executive Officer John D’Alessandro, arrived in Steamboat Springs earlier this month, bringing with him a love of the outdoors and a passion for hiking, biking and skiing.

“I’m excited to experience Steamboat — the outdoors, the mountains and main street,” D’Alessandro said Thursday. “I had other opportunities, and those (activities) are the reasons that I took this job because of the outdoor environment and I love being in the mountains. I love being in ski towns and I love being in small towns.”

D’Alessandro replaces interim CEO Rich Thompson, who had held the position since 2022.

In addition to his love of the outdoors, Honey Stinger’s new CEO also has more than two decades of experience in consumer packaged goods working with top brands including Bayer Aspirin in health care and wellness, Chef Boyardee and Polaner jelly in food products, and Warner-Lambert, which makes Rolaids and the Bubblicious and Trident gums.

He also spent time with Georgia Pacific, where he handled Brawny paper towels and Dixie paper cups and plates, and with Edgewell Personal Care, a company that produces shaving, grooming, sun care, skin care and feminine care products.

“I spent probably about 14 years at Edgewell,” D’Alessandro said. “This is where I got global experience. I managed the businesses globally that included Schick razors, Banana Boat and Hawaiian Tropic sunscreens and Wet Ones. … We did business in 100 countries around the world, and I’ve been to — I don’t know — 50 or 60 countries doing business. I got to see the world.”

D’Alessandro grew up in the Northeast in places like Connecticut, New York and New Jersey. He spent a lot of time in Vermont skiing with his family and has always loved the outdoors. 

D’Alessandro moved to Park City, Utah, in 2018 to work for Nutraceutical, a company that crafts a selection of lifestyle products that work in sync with a healthy diet, exercise and overall wellness supplements.

“It’s an all-natural personal care and nutrition company,” He said. “All of it is very focused on clean products, supplements.”

However, not all of his experience comes from large, high-profile companies. For the past three years, D’Alessandro has been the chief marketing officer for Humm Kombucha in Bend, Oregon.

“I have a lot of experience working at very large public companies with a lot of resources, learning how to build brands and spend marketing dollars efficiently and then increase distribution,” D’Alessandro said. “The company I just left in Bend, Oregon, is about the same size as Honey Stinger, so I also know what it’s like to manage smaller brands with less resources than big public companies. I know how to use those resources efficiently to grow the brand, so I’ve had a lot of experience across all sizes of businesses from billion-dollar brands to $10 million brands.”

D’Alessandro said he is excited to be in Steamboat Springs and to be leading Honey Stinger. He said the company has done a great job growing organically into a national brand that can be found in grocery stores, drug stores and online.

“The brand is used by almost all professional teams across football, baseball, basketball, hockey,” D’Alessandro said. “All the pro teams buy it from us; we don’t give it to them. They buy it from us and that is a testament that our products can help the highest level athletes in professional sports, and they can help your everyday athlete as well.”

Honey Stinger products are currently being used by more than 46,000 pro and college athletes, which has allowed the company to partner with some of the top athletes in a variety of sports ranging from college basketball’s National Player of the Year Zach Edey to international soccer phenom Catarina Macario and many Olympic hopefuls and veterans like decorated swimmer Lilly King.

“Honey Stinger offers great products that help people fuel the athlete’s ambition, whatever that is and whatever activity that is,” D’Alessandro said. “The brand started with endurance athletes and is now helping athletes of all stripes and sizes.”

Honey Stinger, which started in Steamboat Springs in 2001, produces and distributes products including waffles, bars, chews, gels and hydration powders.

“People don’t want to sacrifice nutrition and sports nutrition for taste. There are a lot of products on the market that don’t taste good. They have high protein levels or other things, but they’re not enjoyable,” D’Alessandro said. “Our products are different. They taste really good and Honey Stinger products provide those carbohydrates, proteins, sugars and carbohydrates to help athletes perform better.”

In the same way Honey Stingers products fuel athletes, Honey Stinger’s lead investor, Factory LLC, is hoping that D’Alessandro’s presence will continue to fuel the company’s future growth.

“John is a seasoned leader with a passion for fostering strong brands and accelerating their growth,” Nick DiCarlo, managing partner at Factory LLC, said in a news release. “We are excited to welcome John to the Honey Stinger family and are confident that his leadership will propel the company to new heights.”

D’Alessandro said his home base will remain in Park City, but he will spend his weeks working at the Honey Stinger headquarters in Steamboat Springs. He added that with two grown children living in Colorado, his plans are to spend a lot of time in the state while focusing on Honey Stinger’s continued success.

“I’ll be in and around the community. I’ll be on the mountain and I joined a local gym. I fully intend to continue the strong presence that Honey Stinger has in the community,” D’Alessandro said. “Honey Stinger is an important part of this community not only because it provides jobs, but because it’s a symbol of something that started in Steamboat. That’s something to be proud of and something that I will continue to lean into.”