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| Edited By: Ashish K Tiwari |Source: DNA |Updated: Oct 25, 2017, 07:30 AM IST
Global beverage major PepsiCo forays into the vitamin fortified water category with the launch of brand Aquafina Vitamin Splash in the Indian market. Its first-ever vitamin fortified water in the country, PepsiCo envisages huge opportunity in value-added flavoured water or hydration products with many more products thereby increasing the availability of convenient, affordable and enjoyable nutrition to consumers. Vipul Prakash, senior VP—beverages, PepsiCo India, in conversation with Ashish K Tiwari, about the company’s plans in this space and the way forward.
In India, if you look at volumes, 40% of the beverage category is hydration and this is majorly plain water. The opportunity lies in value-added water. The world over, countries add value to their water by adding flavour at a basic level to make it more enjoyable, by adding vitamins and minerals, by adding small portions of juice or even herbal water. We believe that the next big explosion in terms of category in India will be value added water. Today it is extremely small to your matter of size. Therefore, if you look at the opportunity, even if 10% users convert to value-added water over the next 3-5 years, the category will become huge.
We have other similar products in other markers but this product is developed for the needs of the Indian consumer.
It is a classic case where the opportunity is huge, but the current offerings are negligible – it is a good place for any brand to get into. We are fortunate as we have Aquafina, which is a very trusted bottled water brand, and therefore, we have the benefit of extending it and adding value to it. We also plan to have different versions and different benefits over the next 2-5 years. Aquafina Vitamin Splash is the first offering in that space. The proposition is very simple, Indian consumers know water is good for them, our positioning for Aquafina Vitamin Splash is that it is a first wellness water. We are banking on a great proposition and the brand Aquafina, which is a Rs 1,000 crore annual retail sales brand, which is able to carry an innovation more than a new brand. We will also have the advantage of our go-to markets, etc.
We needed to have the right combinations of vitamins, minerals, low sugar and taste. Unless a beverage is tasty, the consumer will not drink it over a long term. It took us two years to get this product right. This is the first water with an explicit claim. The water is being made available in two flavours viz. Kiwi Lime and Raspberry Mint. Kiwi Lime has zinc and selenium which improves immune function. It has the bundle of B6 and B12 vitamins, along with zinc and selenium. Similarly, Raspberry Mint has antioxidants and vitamin E. In terms of sugar, it is a very low sugar item containing 35 calories per 250 millilitre. That’s very low amounts of sugar and at the same time, it still gives a great and delicious experience. Leaving out the low sugar category, it’ll be the lowest sugar beverage in India. It’s the right product in the market but it will be too early to say if it will grow this year or the next.
Let’s distinguish between where we will be available and where we will activate. We are aiming to be at all outlets catering to premium beverages across the country. We will be available at restaurants, groceries, airports, on-premise, etc. We will also activate salon and hotels thereby making the brand proposition come alive. While we don’t expect spas to be major contributors to volume it’ll be all about the brand association. We have a tie-up with Taj and Marriott, where the welcome drinks you will be given is Aquafina Vitamin Splash. We will also sell through normal channels of distribution – these are just how we will activate the brand. We are already available in some markets at present and will soon have a national rollout. By November first week, we will be available across the country.
Somewhere we have two choices - either we don’t make a genuinely good product and keep the pricing low. If we have to add meaningful levels of vitamins and minerals then we believe that the consumer will be willing to pay. If you look at Rs 30 today, I will look at it as which good vitamin-enriched beverage is available for Rs 30? So yes you are absolutely right, if you look at it as plain water, it is a premium product. But as you seek value, the consumer we have seen is willing to pay more. The price is high but if we can prove to them that the value is also high, the consumer will pay.
