BioSteel was founded in Toronto in 2009 by entrepreneur John Celenza and ex-NHLer Mike Cammalleri. The brand sky-rocked after they made marketing deals with several dozen NHL, NBA and NFL teams, along with well-known NHL stars; Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, John Tavares and 2023 No. 1 overall pick Connor Bedard — all of whom who attended the annual Biosteel-branded training camp together.
This will most likely be a thing of the past depending on BioSteel's plan with the CCAA, with whom BioSteel has begun proceedings under the Companies Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). The CCAA protects them from their creditors to ensure orderly proceedings while they either restructure or wind down operations.
BioSteel should consider the latter option, looking to shut down operations for good. It will be hard to get out of the debt they find themselves in, with all those marketing deals doing more harm than good.
This bankruptcy leaves BioSteel with $45M in unsecured debts, across notable professional leagues and athletes alike; as listed earlier. It is actually the National Hockey League (NHL) that is taking up a large portion of BioSteel's corporation, leaving $8.7 million in debt. Especially after the NHL pushed the brand, which even replaced leading competitor Gatorade as the NHL's official hydration partner. Then, within the league, BioSteel signed separate agreements with six franchises; the Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning.
