Topline
Youtuber and entrepreneur Logan Paul said on a podcast Tuesday that failing to sell his beverage brand Prime at the peak of its popularity cost him at least $100 million, a candid self-indictment about one of the most popular influencer-founded brands of all time.
Logan Paul on Oct. 11, 2023.
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Key Facts
Paul, a regular on Forbes’ highest-earning creator lists, said on the PBD Podcast Tuesday that the decision not to pursue an exit or bring in acquisition partners while Prime was at its peak was a “massive, massive, massive mistake” and one he didn’t support at the time.
The hydration beverage brand, which hit more than $1 billion in global retail sales within two years of launching, peaked in popularity in 2023 but collapsed soon after due to a combination of product issues, regulatory scrutiny and backlash against Paul and some of his other ventures.
At its peak, Paul said the brand passed opportunities where private equity alone would have been willing to buy into Prime for $500 million. He and his founding partner, fellow YouTuber KSI, left acquisition decisions in the hands of partners and “paid the price for it.”
Paul said the brand is now trying to “stabilize” and “earn a little bit of trust back” after negative headlines, lawsuits and calls for an investigation into its marketing tactics by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
CRUCIAL QUOTE
“Don’t be afraid to take chips off the table,” Paul said of his advice to fellow entrepreneurs.
Key Background
Prime launched as a hydration brand co-founded in 2021 by Paul and KSI, who had a combined follower base of over 40 million at the time. Its influencer roots, and intentionally limited product inventory at initial launch, powered an extraordinary early run on the products that saw individual bottles reselling online for upwards of $100 each. Within 24 months, Prime was generating $1.2 billion in annual sales and briefly outsold Gatorade in Walmart’s hydration set. The brand signed landmark partnership deals with Arsenal FC, UFC, WWE, Los Angeles Dodgers and other sports teams, and analysts placed Prime’s peak brand valuation at more than $3 billion. It all came crashing down around 2024, when, in Paul’s words, it became “cool to hate on Prime on social media.” Prime’s energy drink, which contained 200mg of caffeine, became a lightning rod for controversy. Major school districts banned the drink and Schumer called on the FDA to investigate the brand for intentionally marketing dangerous levels of caffeine to children. A class-action lawsuit filed against Prime alleged that independent lab testing detected harmful levels of PFAS “forever chemicals” in certain flavors (the lawsuit was settled in January), and many consumers complained that the drink relied heavily on artificial sweeteners. Prime was estimated to generate about $300 million in revenue in 2025, a 76% decline from its peak.
TANGENT
The Prime band also suffered due to Logan’s personal fall from grace. He convinced fans to invest millions of dollars in an NFT play-to-earn game called CryptoZoo that never turned into a functional game, and the project collapsed amid allegations of a “rug pull” that ultimately saw Paul launch an expensive buyback program for investors—but not before a messy class-action lawsuit. He, KSI and MrBeast launched a pre-packaged meal kit brand called Lunchly in 2024 that fell into scandal almost immediately for marketing heavily processed, high-sodium food to young kids under the guise of being a “healthier” choice. Multiple YouTubers then posted videos showing moldy cheese inside the kits and, rather than issuing a recall, Paul and KSI joked about the controversy on podcasts. He’s also faced backlash for aggressively promoting products on social platforms during inappropriate moments, including filming sponsored Snapchat posts while his fiancée was in labor.
FORBES VALUATION
Paul fell off the list of Forbes top creators this year but was No. 6 in 2023, No. 13 in 2024 and No. 15 in 2025, when he’s estimated to have earned $10 million. KSI, whose real name is Olajide Olatunji, was last featured on the list in 2023, when he earned $24 million in a single year.
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