Mini-sized packs and child-friendly sports caps contributed to lunchbox packaging success

Britvic claims in its Soft Drinks Category Report 2005 that Robinsons Fruit Shoot is now the number one kids drink in the UK, stealing the limelight from Ribena for the first time. A combination of intelligent marketing, on-trade availability, lunchbox-sized packaging and child-friendly sports caps have contributed to its success. Mark Wickens, chairman and creative partner at Brandhouse WTS, says kids drinks face tough competition.

Britvic claims in its Soft Drinks Category Report 2005 that Robinsons Fruit Shoot is now the number one kids drink in the UK, stealing the limelight from Ribena for the first time. A combination of intelligent marketing, on-trade availability, lunchbox-sized packaging and child-friendly sports caps have contributed to its success. Mark Wickens, chairman and creative partner at Brandhouse WTS, says kids drinks face tough competition. To compete with Fruit Shoot, others need to find a different story from the leader s winning identity of a healthy fruit drink and a trusted brand. Soft drinks can be underpinned by health, but a stronger identity and attitude are needed to compete with Fruit Shoot. Wickens confirms that most companies have a health initiative in place, although he says the soft drinks market could do a lot more. Soft drinks come from a fairly healthy background anyway, so they think they don t have to do as much as other industries. There needs to be more innovation in packaging and design to promote the health benefits further. Wickens also points to an over-reliance on wordy messages and fruit imagery on packaging and stresses the need for more creativity in the soft drinks industry to capture kids imaginations. Calypso s brand definition natural, fun and healthy refreshment for the youth market reflects the mantra reverberating around category managers offices as manufacturers jump on the health bandwagon. Fizzy drinks are no longer enough to capture hearts and minds. Flavoured water for kids is the next big thing in soft drinks, predicts Richard Cooke, Calypso s marketing director. Calypso s range includes kids drinks made with natural mineral water, such as Rapidz in orange, strawberry and blackberry variants, and Splash, which are low-calorie drinks made with sparkling mineral water.