Coca-Cola has axed its tropical soft drinks brand Lilt after almost 50 years, and relaunched it as Fanta Pineapple & Grapefruit.
New Fanta Pineapple & Grapefruit 330ml cans, 500ml bottles and two-litre bottles featuring “the same totally tropical taste” as Lilt will roll into retailers tomorrow (14 February).
They feature “a graphic nod to the totally tropical taste of the product’s roots”.
A zero-sugar version of the drink will also be available in a two-litre bottle format.
“Keen Lilt fans may have spotted a gradual transition as the drink has made its way into the Fanta family over the past few months, with changes to its packaging and logo,” said Coca-Cola Europacific Partners.
“Some have even hypothesised on social media that Lilt may be becoming part of the Fanta brand, and one even went as far as producing their own news broadcast-style video.”
Read more:
-
Why the drink formerly known as Lilt could thrive in the Fanta stable
-
The internet reacts to the loss of Lilt
CCEP GB VP of commercial development Martin Attock said: “Our main priority with this announcement is to reassure Lilt’s loyal fanbase that absolutely nothing has changed when it comes to the iconic taste of the drink they know and love.”
“It’s still bursting with tangy tropical flavours. It’s just got itself a new name.”
Lilt made its UK debut in 1975 with the strapline: ‘The Totally Tropical Taste’.
One 1988 TV advert depicted the ‘Lilt man’ delivering cans and bottles of the drink to beach-goers from a Lilt float.
In 1998, the brand hired two unknown British Jamaican women – Blanche Williams and Hazel Palmer – to star in its TV ads. They became known as the ‘Lilt ladies’.
Lilt’s switchover to the Fanta brand will be supported with social media and out-of-home advertising and PR and influencer activity.
Fanta was worth £281m at the end of 2022 – more than 17 times Lilt’s value, whose sales reached £15.6m in the 52 weeks to 10 September 2022 [NielsenIQ].
No comments yet