He orchestrated one of the best viral advertisements of the year, calling on rapper and weed enthusiast Snoop Dogg to give up smoke for Solo Stove. Then the bold move backfired, costing him his job.

Solo Stove parent company Solo Brands announced this month that they are replacing CEO John Merris with former Vista Outdoor Inc. CEO Christopher Metz, mere weeks after the fire pit brand was the talk of the town. …

John Merris, the CEO of Solo Brands, said the campaign had nearly 7 billion impressions. He wrote a 44-post thread on X about how they scored the “Doggfather of smoke” as Solo Stove’s first-ever spokesperson.

It turns out, however, the ad was all smoke and no fire. While the campaign raised brand awareness and expanded Solo Stove’s audience, “it did not lead to the sales lift that we had planned,” Solo Brands interim CFO Andrea Tarbox said.

[They spent more on Snoop’s contract than they got in increased sales. This may make the Hall of Shame for marketing campaign flops. It’s not as bad as New Coke, but it ain’t great. The ad was lame, and it probably angered more people than it amused, and sales likely reflected that. — Ed]