Soft focus

H2OH! is the number two flavoured water bought on impulse, with a 1.5L bottle available for consumers who want to relax at home

Christmas sees consumers of all ages get into the party spirit, and volume sales of soft drinks rocket.

Brand Central

11 November 2008

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At a glance

Coca-Cola is investing over €1.5m in its Christmas advertising campaign
H2OH! is the number two flavoured water bought on impulse
7UP is now bought by more households than any other soft drink
Red Bull Cola has been introduced into the cola market
This year bus shelters will be Bluetooth enabled to allow customers to download the Coca-Cola theme as a ringtone
Pepsi has a strong focus on digital this year, providing interactive experiences on www.pepsiyouniverse.com
Tipperary Kidz’ new bottle contains 20% less plastic than before
Boost was re-branded using the high impact colours black and blue

Euromonitor reports that manufacturers have developed new innovations in carbonated drinks, in an attempt to stem the flow of consumers from carbonates to ‘healthier’ still drinks. These variants within the better-for-you category will help attract more health conscious consumers, especially men who may be off-put by ‘diet’ tags. In a similar vein, manufacturers are also increasingly placing emphasis on their products’ use of natural ingredients.
Christmas is also a time for indulgence however and strong Christmas-focused advertisements for leading players such as Coca-Cola have now become part of the consumer festive landscape.

Taking full creative control

2008 has seen Pepsi increase its value share in a vibrant cola market. Ireland’s number two cola brand saw a great reaction to its latest football campaign this year when it asked Pepsi lovers to take full creative control based on one simple prompt: “If you were given the tools and the players, what would you do?” They answered in their thousands to create a now iconic ad featuring football stars Cesc Fabregas, David Beckham, Frank Lampard, Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry.
With its strong focus on digital this year, Pepsi has also provided exciting and interactive experiences on www.pepsiyouniverse.ie. Watch out for exciting news in 2009 as the brand continues to score hits with consumers.

Impulse purchases flourish

H2OH! is the number two flavoured water bought on impulse, suiting consumers out and about doing essential Christmas shopping. A H2OH! 1.5 litre bottle is also available to enjoy at home. The bottle will certainly add some colour to any Christmas table. With its modern, colourful and ergonomically designed bottle, this lightly sparkling fruit flavoured water will look good in the hands of any fashionista. For consumers wanting to look their best on the party circuit, this sugar-free and no calorie refreshment is great for topping up on the recommended daily water intake. H20H! is a great convenience and on-the-go choice for the festive period.

Power up your profits

Christmas would not be complete without adding a little fruit and sparkle to the festive season and this year 7UP, Ireland’s favourite lemon and lime drink, is doing just that. 2008 saw the launch of the brand’s highly successful “Nature is Closer than you Think” platform, the key driver for the brand this year, executed through an extensive integrated campaign across TV, outdoor and in-store. Bringing the true nature of 7UP into the homes of Ireland, appreciation for its “100% Natural Flavours” can be seen right across the stable. 7UP is now bought by more households than any other soft drink and 7UP Free is continuing to grow in the better-for-you category. This festive season also sees the return of 7UP Christmas on Ice, Ireland’s favourite ice skating event. With one great event with three fantastic venues, 7UP Christmas on Ice runs from 14 November to mid January at the RDS, Liffey Valley Shopping Centre and Letterkenny and is sure to spread some festive fun throughout the country.

Holidays are coming

Over E1.5m will be invested in the Coca-Cola’s 2008 Christmas marketing campaign

For the third consecutive year, Coca-Cola is showing positive growth and is preparing for another successful Christmas. Over €1.5m will be invested in the 2008 Christmas marketing campaign and from 17 November, Coca-Cola’s famous ‘Holidays are Coming’ soundtrack will be broadcast on TV and radio across the country. The iconic ‘Holidays are Coming’ music heralds the arrival of Christmas for mums and teenagers alike and is very much associated with the Christmas festive feeling.

Coke is also running an extensive outdoor campaign which, on a selection of key sites, will feature innovative ‘sonic units’ playing the ‘Holidays are Coming’ music as well as fibre-optic lighting. Some bus shelters will be Bluetooth enabled to allow customers to download the soundtrack as a ringtone on their mobile phone.

Give your sales wings

Red Bull Energy Drink is a functional beverage with a unique combination of ingredients. It was made for moments of increased physical and mental stress and improves endurance, alertness, concentration and reaction speed. In short: it vitalizes body and mind. The effectiveness of Red Bull Energy Drink has been proven by a large number of scientific studies and is appreciated by many of the world’s top athletes and drivers, opinion-leaders and hard-working people with active lifestyles

New cola enters market

After creating and successfully leading the energy drink category for over 20 years, Red Bull is now entering the largest non-alcoholic beverage category in the world with a cola made of ingredients from 100% natural sources.

The cola from Red Bull is a unique blend of ingredients, all from 100% natural sources. In addition, it is the only cola which contains both the original Kola nut and the Coca leaf. Therefore, it is a very special recipe.

The result is a natural, not-too-sweet cola taste, which comes from using the right plant extracts. Red Bull Cola has initially launched in Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Great Britain, Ireland, Russia and Las Vegas.

Functional drinks that boost margins

Boost drinks has proved a huge success in Ireland since its launch. Recently, Boost was re-branded using the high impact colours black and blue. The new bottle will boost sales and continue to offer a great profit margin in an increasingly growing and competitive sector. As the demand for functional energy drinks accelerates, Boost is a must have for convenience retailers.

Boost is available in 500ml and 1 litre resealable silver PET bottles, making it a one of a kind. With added energy releasing B vitamins, caffeine and amino acids, such as taurine, Boost drinks work alongside the existing natural metabolites found in the human body to provide an extra boost of energy when needed most.

The new Finches 2L Twin Pack is flashed at E3.00

Finches fly in for Christmas

This Christmas sees the arrival of the new Finches 2 litre twin pack flashed at €3.00. The pack offers customers a great tasting premium product, at a low price. The Finches 2 litre twin pack is always hugely popular and now looks even better on shelf. Packs are available in Orange, Orange Light and Rock Shandy.

Finches 1.5 litre mixers offers fantastic value for consumers. Finches is a half litre larger than other mixers available, but at a great price. This year, neck collars will appear on bottles highlighting the larger bottle size. Finches will have a variety of offers available across the market place, to ensure retailers maximise their mixer sales.

Finches 500ml sales have gone from strength to strength in 2008, highlighting consumer desire for quality Irish products. Available in Orange, Orange Light, Rock Shandy and Lemon and now Orange price flashed at 99c.

This Christmas Country Spring will be available in a ‘two bottles for E2.00’ Twinpack

Amazing value

Country Spring, Ireland’s big value 3 litre bottle, is made from pure spring water and is available in nine fantastic flavours (Orange, Cola, Lemon & Lime, Red Lemonade, White Lemonade, American Cream Soda, Iron Brew, Apple and a new Sugar Free Orange variant). Country Spring offers amazing value with 3 litre for the regular price of other 2 litre brands. This Christmas Country Spring will be available in a super ‘two bottles for E2.00’ twinpack (available in Orange, Cola, Lemon & Lime and Red Lemonade).

Clearly refreshing

Tipperary Natural Mineral Water is a key player in the Irish bottled water market. Bottled by the Gleeson Group in County Tipperary, the range is available in 2L, 1.5L, 1L, 750ml, 500ml and 250ml PET bottles and 25cl and 75cl glass bottles. Also available are 500ml and 2L bottles of Clearly Tipperary, a sparkling flavoured water.

A re-brand on Tipperary Kidz has just been completed. The new bottle contains 20% less plastic, making it more environmentally friendly. It now has a one piece flip cap so it’s child safe and easier to use. Another great feature are the bottle’s ambidextrous grooves which provides an ‘ezi-grip’ for either hand. These product innovations will ensure that Tipperary Kidz continues to lead the way in the children’s water category. With these re-brands and significant activity planned, 2009 promises to be a great year for the Irish brand, which features the successful strapline “Tipperary. Part of you.”

A natural source of youth

Evian is the number one natural mineral water in the world. It is purified through a natural filtration process that spans over 15 years, deep within the French Alps. Evian is available in many different formats such as 50cl, 75cl and 1.5L so there is a bottle size to suit every consumer and every occasion.

Volvic generates clean water for Africa

Volvic 1L-for-10L campaign, in partnership with World Vision Ireland, was launched last April and is on target to deliver over 1.7 billion litres of water to Africa in 2008. For every litre of Volvic and Volvic Touch of Fruit sold in Ireland and the UK, Volvic and World Vision will generate 10 litres of safe drinking water across Africa through the provision of mechanised wells.

Europe looks beyond recycling in green initiatives

While drinks manufacturers such as Coca-Cola are introducing new consumer-targeted recycling schemes in the US, European counterparts say they favour a broader approach to ensuring environmental sustainability.
The Union of European Beverages Associations (UNESDA) said its members have already made breakthroughs in recycling and needed to look at other environmental concerns.

Recently, global bottling group Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) announced it was trialling a new scheme in the US state of Minnesota to provide special bins to collect aluminium and plastic beverage packs for re-use in its operations. A spokesperson said the company was exploring possible longer-term strategies of global rollouts for similar schemes.

Under the new CCE scheme, bottle-shaped recycle bins will be placed at 10 petrol stations across the state, where collected materials will be sorted by local charities, and used for packaging as aluminium foil or recycled Polyethylene terephthalate (PET). It is hoped that more of these bins, operated by the Holiday Stationstores company, will be included in the project by next year, and Coca-Cola says this latest initiative forms part of a pledge to eventually recycle 100% of its packaging materials.

UNESDA has said however that while manufacturers are increasingly under pressure to find greener ways for consumers to dispose of waste; similar recycling initiatives were already well established across the EU, reported BeverageDaily.com.
A spokesperson for the association said that schemes using bottle deposits and material sorting bins in some EU countries reflected the industry’s longstanding commitment to recycling and collection in the bloc.

She added that new approaches to green production other than recycling would therefore be needed to meet European green targets. Improving the ease of which materials such as PET can be recycled, water conservation and carbon footprints are all areas that UNESDA says it is currently examining.

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