- Drastically change the growth trajectory of the category
- Create an entirely NEW category (in the US market) or
- Transcend and/or disrupt the beverage market
Of course, this is my list, so, I'll rely on personal and professional experiences to draw my conclusions, got it? Here we go!
New Coke - 1985
I mean, this IS the brand that started the whole sparkling category, before it was even called sparkling. Well, I figured there aren't too many people who do NOT know about Coca-Cola's impact on the beverage industry, so, I felt there is no need to include it here. So, instead, I start with New Coke. This drink made a lot of people angry, plain and simple, and six months later, Coke dumped the idea and brought back it's old version under the name Coca-Cola Classic. But, it wasn't entirely the same. The Classic formula used high fructose corn syrup, whereas, the older, original formula contained cane sugar. None the less, conspiracy theorists have had a field day with this ever since by saying it was a marketing gimmick by Coca-Cola to boost declining sales to rival Pepsi-Cola, on the heels of The Pepsi Challenge campaign.
That's quite the stretch, and risk, to think a company would offer an inferior, unpopular product in the hopes that nostalgic loyalists would create a grassroots movement that would shake the beverage company at it's very foundation until it reversed course and brought back to the old formula. The Coke drinker versus the global corporate giant was a real life David vs, Goliath story. No matter the reason, New Coke led to Classic Coke and that minor course correction helped reinvigorate Coca-Cola's sales and solidified it's lead in global market share throughout the '90s and even through to today.
New Coke - 1985
I mean, this IS the brand that started the whole sparkling category, before it was even called sparkling. Well, I figured there aren't too many people who do NOT know about Coca-Cola's impact on the beverage industry, so, I felt there is no need to include it here. So, instead, I start with New Coke. This drink made a lot of people angry, plain and simple, and six months later, Coke dumped the idea and brought back it's old version under the name Coca-Cola Classic. But, it wasn't entirely the same. The Classic formula used high fructose corn syrup, whereas, the older, original formula contained cane sugar. None the less, conspiracy theorists have had a field day with this ever since by saying it was a marketing gimmick by Coca-Cola to boost declining sales to rival Pepsi-Cola, on the heels of The Pepsi Challenge campaign. That's quite the stretch, and risk, to think a company would offer an inferior, unpopular product in the hopes that nostalgic loyalists would create a grassroots movement that would shake the beverage company at it's very foundation until it reversed course and brought back to the old formula. The Coke drinker versus the global corporate giant was a real life David vs, Goliath story. No matter the reason, New Coke led to Classic Coke and that minor course correction helped reinvigorate Coca-Cola's sales and solidified it's lead in global market share throughout the '90s and even through to today.
Miller Lite - 1973
Originally called “Lite Beer from Miller”, this was an early attempt by a brewery to try to tap into (pun intended) a new, growing concern for consumers; their health. Lighter versions of beer had been around since the '60s, but never got out of their regional hold. Lite Beer from Miller did just that and became the first mainstream light beer.
It's television campaigns used the "Tastes great!" "Less Filling!" tag line, made famous by sports stars such as New York Yankee's manager Billy Martin and ornery owner George Steinbrenner. The two were known for their tumultuous, on-again, off-again relationship in which Steinbrenner fired and then re-hired Martin several times. In 1977, due to Lite Beer from Miller's growth, Miller Brewing moved into 2nd place behind Anheuser-Busch in market share. AB was slow to react. It wasn't until five years later, in 1982, that AB finally saw the potential of a light beer and introduced Bud Light. In a reaction, Lite Beer from Miller would change it's name to simply Miller Lite. By 1992, for the first time ever, light beer sales overtook regular domestic beer sales in the U.S. and Miller Lite would be the #1 beer in the light beer category until 1994, when Bud Light surpassed it, and hasn't looked back since. However, Bud Light has seen it's coat tails get nipped in recent years by Coors Light.
It's television campaigns used the "Tastes great!" "Less Filling!" tag line, made famous by sports stars such as New York Yankee's manager Billy Martin and ornery owner George Steinbrenner. The two were known for their tumultuous, on-again, off-again relationship in which Steinbrenner fired and then re-hired Martin several times. In 1977, due to Lite Beer from Miller's growth, Miller Brewing moved into 2nd place behind Anheuser-Busch in market share. AB was slow to react. It wasn't until five years later, in 1982, that AB finally saw the potential of a light beer and introduced Bud Light. In a reaction, Lite Beer from Miller would change it's name to simply Miller Lite. By 1992, for the first time ever, light beer sales overtook regular domestic beer sales in the U.S. and Miller Lite would be the #1 beer in the light beer category until 1994, when Bud Light surpassed it, and hasn't looked back since. However, Bud Light has seen it's coat tails get nipped in recent years by Coors Light.
Crystal Pepsi - 1992
File this one under "bust" due to it's short lifespan. Pepsi actually called this caffeine-free concoction a "Clear Alternative"
to regular colas, in reference to it's transparent club soda look. Funny, since it was a robust #2 in the "regular cola" category. Perhaps they learned nothing from Coke's own cannibalization just seven years earlier. But, it was more of the way it was launched rather than the product itself. In January 1993, Crystal Pepsi was introduced nationally in a commercial featuring Van Halen's hugely popular hit Right Now during Super Bowl XXVII. Not to be outdone, Coca Cola introduced TaB Clear.
Unfortunately, for Pepsi and Coke, right now meant exactly that. Both
brands were dead by Summer. But, not all was lost. This really took Madison Avenue to a whole new level of Super Bowl marketing which changed the advertising world, especially the Cola War landscape to this day. Pepsi would go on to continue to purchase prime :30 commercial spots during the Super Bowl every year, and usually attack Coca-Cola in the process.
Red Bull - 1997 (U.S. entry)
This is another beverage that can be credited with creating an entirely new category. For years, Red Bull was in the tonic drinks category in Japan. When it entered the U.S. market in 1997, it was marketed solely as an energy drink. There were already a few energy drinks scattered about, but it was Red Bull which took themselves by the horns and launched what is now over a $12 billion dollar a year category. It also spawned the entirely new category of energy shots which hosts a bevy of entrants in small 2 oz single serve bottles. Even as Monster Energy has grabbed almost 40% of the market, Red Bull enjoys a slight 4 point advantage. One more aspect of Red Bull's impact to the market is the emergence of extreme sports associated with energy drink sponsors. By being the energy category catalyst, Red Bull garners space on this list. However, it may be Monster who gets the last laugh as they've continued their upward trajectory, all at the expense of Red Bull's market share.
Could it be? Diet Rite? Diet Rite makes the list as the first sugar-free soda. Introduced by Royal Crown Cola in 1958, Diet Rite was originally sweetened with cyclamate until that sweetener was banned by the FDA in 1969. After that, it used saccharin to sweeten its taste. Then, the FDA attempted to ban saccharin due to studies released that claimed the substance caused cancer in lab rats. Man, can't a diet cola catch a break? The ban never happened, but, the effect of the FDA inquiry forced the industry to agree to labeling guidelines which required a disclaimer about the presence of the sweetener as well as it's effects on rats. In 1987, the brand ended its use of saccharin and began using NutraSweet's aspartame instead. A year later, Diet Rite eliminated sodium from it's ingredients as Americans began to become increasingly knowledgeable about nutrition. So, Diet Rite was really ahead of the curve in its realization that people care about what they consume and actually marketed a product to fit a very specific need... a healthier lifestyle. It also blazed the trail for other brands such as Diet Pepsi, TaB and Diet Coke. Then, the sugar-free category expanded from just colas to include other soda flavors. The sugar-free preference expanded even further, and now, pretty much every beverage category has a sugar-free entry.
Diet Coke 1982
Coca-Cola refused to introduce any other product utilizing the name Coke for fear of cannibalizing it's iconic global brand. Besides, the company already had a sugar-free cola in the form of TaB. However, TaB sales started to decline due to Pepsi-Cola's own sugar-free offering, Diet Pepsi. It was time for Coke to act, and in 1982, Diet Coke was born. It overtook TaB in sales really fast. Contrary to popular belief, Diet Coke is not just a sugar-free version of Coca-Cola. In addition to not having sugar (it is sweetened with NutraSweet), Diet Coke has it's own unique formula. Since then, it has enjoyed a meteoric rise, and in 2011, it overtook Pepsi-Cola for the #2 spot in market share of soda. Now, Coca-Cola and Diet Coke occupy the top 2 soda brands.
Coca-Cola refused to introduce any other product utilizing the name Coke for fear of cannibalizing it's iconic global brand. Besides, the company already had a sugar-free cola in the form of TaB. However, TaB sales started to decline due to Pepsi-Cola's own sugar-free offering, Diet Pepsi. It was time for Coke to act, and in 1982, Diet Coke was born. It overtook TaB in sales really fast. Contrary to popular belief, Diet Coke is not just a sugar-free version of Coca-Cola. In addition to not having sugar (it is sweetened with NutraSweet), Diet Coke has it's own unique formula. Since then, it has enjoyed a meteoric rise, and in 2011, it overtook Pepsi-Cola for the #2 spot in market share of soda. Now, Coca-Cola and Diet Coke occupy the top 2 soda brands.
Miller Genuine Draft (MGD) - 1985
It wasn't really a bad tasting beer, but, I was never a huge fan, mainly because I worked for a local beer distributor of brands that competed against MGD. I wont spend a whole lot of time on this brand, but, I will give credit to its impact on a category in the beer industry. MGD was introduced as a cold-filtered beer that tastes like real draught beer. They said it wasn't pasteurized, rather, it was cold-filtered instead, which led to the draught taste claim. Who knows, but, one thing is for sure... that cold-filtered process started a frenzy resulting in many competitive beers using the same process. It seems they all had names that included the words Draft, Ice and/or Dry. Many of these beers had ABVs higher than the average, which is what led to their popularity. However, the gimmick of Draft, Ice and Dry beers faded away along with the 1990s... thank goodness.
It wasn't really a bad tasting beer, but, I was never a huge fan, mainly because I worked for a local beer distributor of brands that competed against MGD. I wont spend a whole lot of time on this brand, but, I will give credit to its impact on a category in the beer industry. MGD was introduced as a cold-filtered beer that tastes like real draught beer. They said it wasn't pasteurized, rather, it was cold-filtered instead, which led to the draught taste claim. Who knows, but, one thing is for sure... that cold-filtered process started a frenzy resulting in many competitive beers using the same process. It seems they all had names that included the words Draft, Ice and/or Dry. Many of these beers had ABVs higher than the average, which is what led to their popularity. However, the gimmick of Draft, Ice and Dry beers faded away along with the 1990s... thank goodness.
Samuel Adams - 1985
The aforementioned beer distributor I worked for was also one of the first distributors to carry micro-brew Samuel Adams in the state of Florida. This was around 1992, or, thereabouts and I won a trip by Sam Adams to their brewery in Boston. Actually, I didn't really win, I was kind of gifted the trip by my boss who didn't want to go (you know, that whole NY-Boston rivalry thing, probably). Anyway, while there on the brewery tour, I got to meet founder, Jim Koch (as it turned out, he was as genuine then as he appears to be in his commercials today). At the time of their rise in the early '90s, micro-brews (now called craft beers) were all the rage. Sam Adams was no different and really took the micro-brew market by storm. Its parent company, Boston Beer, became one of the first small independent breweries to really catch mainstream appeal with its brands. One of the things that always impressed me was the fact that Samuel Adams was the first ever American-produced beer to be sold in Germany under the German Purity Act. That's pretty impressive and the brand spurred on a new era of independent brewers all over this country looking to replicate their success. And for that, I thank them!
The aforementioned beer distributor I worked for was also one of the first distributors to carry micro-brew Samuel Adams in the state of Florida. This was around 1992, or, thereabouts and I won a trip by Sam Adams to their brewery in Boston. Actually, I didn't really win, I was kind of gifted the trip by my boss who didn't want to go (you know, that whole NY-Boston rivalry thing, probably). Anyway, while there on the brewery tour, I got to meet founder, Jim Koch (as it turned out, he was as genuine then as he appears to be in his commercials today). At the time of their rise in the early '90s, micro-brews (now called craft beers) were all the rage. Sam Adams was no different and really took the micro-brew market by storm. Its parent company, Boston Beer, became one of the first small independent breweries to really catch mainstream appeal with its brands. One of the things that always impressed me was the fact that Samuel Adams was the first ever American-produced beer to be sold in Germany under the German Purity Act. That's pretty impressive and the brand spurred on a new era of independent brewers all over this country looking to replicate their success. And for that, I thank them!
Gatorade - 1965
Being a Florida Gator fan, I am obliged to include Gatorade on this list. Well, that's not the real
reason, entirely. Gatorade forever changed the way athletes prepare and recover from activity. Originally created as a thirst-quencher by researchers at the University of Florida, it was first to be called Gator-Aid, but, the ever-intrusive FDA told them they would need to show proof of it's isotonic restorative properties. So, instead, they opted to name it Gatorade to get around that pesky federal regulation. Shortly after gaining notoriety for use by the Florida Gator football team, the drink was sold to innovative canned-food manufacturer Stokely-Van Camp, of baked bean fame. In the early 1980s, there was an NBA basketball player by the name of Michael Jordan, you may have heard of him, who became the pitchman for Gatorade. Shortly thereafter, every kid wanted to Be like Mike. It became the new Wheaties in the way it used popular athletes in its advertising. And this led to other brands from various consumer product industries to look at athletes as a source of revenue, such as Nike, with its athletic shoes. Gatorade is the official sports drink of over a dozen professional sports leagues as well as hundreds of teams world wide. Truly a trendsetter, Gatorade still enjoys a large share of the isotonic market 40 years later.
Being a Florida Gator fan, I am obliged to include Gatorade on this list. Well, that's not the real
reason, entirely. Gatorade forever changed the way athletes prepare and recover from activity. Originally created as a thirst-quencher by researchers at the University of Florida, it was first to be called Gator-Aid, but, the ever-intrusive FDA told them they would need to show proof of it's isotonic restorative properties. So, instead, they opted to name it Gatorade to get around that pesky federal regulation. Shortly after gaining notoriety for use by the Florida Gator football team, the drink was sold to innovative canned-food manufacturer Stokely-Van Camp, of baked bean fame. In the early 1980s, there was an NBA basketball player by the name of Michael Jordan, you may have heard of him, who became the pitchman for Gatorade. Shortly thereafter, every kid wanted to Be like Mike. It became the new Wheaties in the way it used popular athletes in its advertising. And this led to other brands from various consumer product industries to look at athletes as a source of revenue, such as Nike, with its athletic shoes. Gatorade is the official sports drink of over a dozen professional sports leagues as well as hundreds of teams world wide. Truly a trendsetter, Gatorade still enjoys a large share of the isotonic market 40 years later.
Perrier - 1976
I used to hear it all the time... "who would pay money for a bottle of water when you can get it for free from your faucet?" Well, obviously, somebody is buying it! Perrier, bottled at the source in a spring in le Midi, also known as Southern France, Perrier water is naturally carbonated and it's trademark green glass bottles resemble a stubby bowling pin. Purchased by Nestlé in 1992, the former rivals merged and would soon rise to be one of the largest beverage manufacturers in the world. Bottled water isn't just for fancy country club elitists. Perrier sparkling water broke into mainstream refreshment in the late 1970s and found itself in almost every grocery store. To this day, Perrier is the third largest sparkling brand in dollar sales. But, sparkling water isn't as huge as the other water segment it helped create. Whether you're talking about spring water or plain old purified water, still water is the largest part of the bottled water business. And, Nestle is more than double in dollar sales than its closest competitors, Dasani and Aquafina, combined. The most common size is 500 ml PET bottles in a 24 ct case and are carried in millions of school lunch boxes and sold in millions of value meals. They are in just about every supermarket shelf and beverage cooler set, as well. Bottled water volume now exceeds 12 billion US gallons annually and the average person consumes 36 gallons a year. The bottled water industry ushered in many changes, including the way bottles are made. Recyclable PET bottles are now made with 55% less material than they were 15 years ago. And Coca-Cola has developed the Plant Bottle, made from 100% plant material. Through all the innovation and advancements, they can all thank Perrier for making fancy mainstream.
Frappuccino - 1995
It's a mix of two words, frappe and cappuccino... Frappuccino. This drink was already very popular at Starbucks coffee shop outlets when the company decided it wanted to sell it's drinks in conventional retail outlets such as supermarkets. It's not unheard of for a restaurant chain to try to increase profits by making their product available outside of their normal business footprint. Take Olive Garden, for example. You can buy their famous croutons and salad dressing at almost every supermarket. Many BBQ places bottle their own sauce that you can buy in supermarkets. In reality, Starbucks wasn't exactly taking a huge leap when they decided to go retail. But, it did have two slight obstacles to overcome; manufacturing and distribution. Companies who have mastered a market are reluctant to turn over licensing of their brand and image to a co-packer simply in order to create another revenue stream, and, likewise, a manufacturer isn't really interested in making and marketing a product it knows nothing about. As a result, the North American Coffee Partnership was signed with PepsiCo. This was a 50/50 joint venture which allowed Starbucks' coffee knowledge to mix with Pepsi's beverage aisle knowledge and in one fell swoop, Starbucks solved both problems. With Pepsi's extensive distribution reach into many channels and their R & D capabilities, they worked with Starbucks baristas to create Frappuccino, the most popular RTD coffee that would grow-up to own a 90% share in a short time. The category remained stagnant in innovation for almost 15 years with several companies coming and going, but, none ever really posing a real threat to Frappuccino's share. Then, the category started to expand to include iced coffees and continues to innovate with brands such as illy Issimo, Califia Farms, Caribou, Nitro Cold-Brew and even a hot coffee shot in a can called HOTSHOT, which is displayed in a heated counter-top unit in convenience stores. It is said that Starbuck's CEO Howard Shultz wrote in his book, Pour Your Heart Out, that they were so confident in Frappuccino, they didn't even bother to test-market the idea. Can't say that was a bad idea considering they still own 70% of a category they created over 20 years ago.
It's a mix of two words, frappe and cappuccino... Frappuccino. This drink was already very popular at Starbucks coffee shop outlets when the company decided it wanted to sell it's drinks in conventional retail outlets such as supermarkets. It's not unheard of for a restaurant chain to try to increase profits by making their product available outside of their normal business footprint. Take Olive Garden, for example. You can buy their famous croutons and salad dressing at almost every supermarket. Many BBQ places bottle their own sauce that you can buy in supermarkets. In reality, Starbucks wasn't exactly taking a huge leap when they decided to go retail. But, it did have two slight obstacles to overcome; manufacturing and distribution. Companies who have mastered a market are reluctant to turn over licensing of their brand and image to a co-packer simply in order to create another revenue stream, and, likewise, a manufacturer isn't really interested in making and marketing a product it knows nothing about. As a result, the North American Coffee Partnership was signed with PepsiCo. This was a 50/50 joint venture which allowed Starbucks' coffee knowledge to mix with Pepsi's beverage aisle knowledge and in one fell swoop, Starbucks solved both problems. With Pepsi's extensive distribution reach into many channels and their R & D capabilities, they worked with Starbucks baristas to create Frappuccino, the most popular RTD coffee that would grow-up to own a 90% share in a short time. The category remained stagnant in innovation for almost 15 years with several companies coming and going, but, none ever really posing a real threat to Frappuccino's share. Then, the category started to expand to include iced coffees and continues to innovate with brands such as illy Issimo, Califia Farms, Caribou, Nitro Cold-Brew and even a hot coffee shot in a can called HOTSHOT, which is displayed in a heated counter-top unit in convenience stores. It is said that Starbuck's CEO Howard Shultz wrote in his book, Pour Your Heart Out, that they were so confident in Frappuccino, they didn't even bother to test-market the idea. Can't say that was a bad idea considering they still own 70% of a category they created over 20 years ago.Snapple - 1987
Peach Snapple. The first time I remember hearing of Snapple was in Florida when Rush Limbaugh would constantly mention how he really liked the product while on the air of his nationally syndicated radio talk show. Little did I understand at the time, but, Limbaugh was being paid by Snapple to say that. Created in Long Island, NY, Snapple was a strong regional player in the bottled RTD tea category. After a few years of growth in the late '80s and early '90s,
Snapple was purchased in 1994 by Quaker Oats, the same one-time owner who purchased another beverage on this list, Gatorade, just 11 years earlier. As it would turn out, Snapple started a revolution in the non-carbonated soft-drink set where many would come to compete for a dollar, although, the product contained more sugar and carbs than a traditional carbonated soft drink that it tried to compete against as a healthier option. There have been hundreds of brands, some still around today, that followed Snapple's lead in using a web of distributors across the country to sell and deliver its brands. And, by not having any manufacturing facilities to keep up, it saved costs by using co-packers. The brand has been sold a few more times and is now owned by Dr Pepper Snapple Group, a spin-off from an earlier sale to London-based Cadbury-Schweppes. Although their ingredients, and sometimes their "facts" printed underneath their bottle caps, are called into question, one thing you can't say is that they didn't impact the category.Honest Tea - 1998
In the spirit of full transparency, I worked for Honest Tea and now work for VEB, which manages Honest Tea, along with some other brands, and is a business unit of the Coca-Cola Company. With that being said, I know Honest Tea co-founder Seth Goldman. I have an autographed copy of his book, Mission In a Bottle, which details, in comic book fashion, the birth and rise of Honest Tea. So, I speak to this brand as more of an authority than any of the other beverages I've mentioned, although, I must admit, I've probably drank more Samuel Adams than I have Honest Tea, just sayin'. Anyway, Seth was tired of drinking sugary drinks after his runs in Central Park, so, from the beginning, his goal was to create a less-sweet beverage using only organic ingredients. He teamed up with a former professor of his from the Yale School of Management, co-founder Barry Nalebuff. Together, they created a brand that has grown to see over $150 million dollars in sales a year. Honest Tea entered the organic category and brought an organic beverage mainstream. But, in order to make this list, remember, it had to drastically change the growth trajectory or transcend/disrupt the category. Honest Tea accomplished both of those things. In the process, Honest Tea became the #1 RTD bottled organic tea and dramatically changed the way the American consumer looks at organic beverages. However, many early adapters of Honest Tea were upset at the sale of the company in 2011 to Coca-Cola. Goldman challenged the criticism by explaining it was an opportunity to "democratize organics". Today, Honest Tea has helped shed light on GMO labeling and has several lines of organic beverages which are sold in over 100,000 retail outlets. In addition, Honest Tea went from using just under 800,000 pounds of organic ingredients in 2007 to nearly 7 million pounds in 2015, impacting the lives of organic farmers and their communities a half a world away through Fair Trade payments. The brand even captured national attention when a newly elected President Obama was photographed signing a bill with a bottle of Honest Tea on the historic Resolute Desk in the Oval Office. No word on whether Donald Trump drinks Honest Tea, but, I know he'd like their success story.