Flavoured water for kids is the next big thing as the hydration message filters through, with market leaders saying there’s room for bottled water and juice drinks in school lunchboxes

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.
Smaller, niche players are also primed to enter the kids’ soft drinks market, as demand for new flavours and healthier options grows.
Peter Rabbit Organics launched its first kids’ drink - a no-sugar apple & grape juice - in 120 Waitrose stores at the end of April. Anytime Food & Drink’s Wild Thornberry’s juice drinks build on the eco-friendly reputation of the Nickelodeon cartoon to communicate a natural option for kids’ lunch bags.
Teachers are encouraging parents to provide more drinks for their kids to consume through the school day, in addition to the traditional lunchbox drink, as the hydration message filters through.
Richard Laming of the British Soft Drinks’ Association explains: “It’s often overlooked that some people are not drinking enough fluids and all drinks, including carbonates, count towards them.”
Calypso’s Cooke says: “There is a role for two separate drinks: bottled water in the bag and another drink for lunch. It is very important that the drink fits in the lunchbox for the second occasion.”