Kids’ beverages are changing. Functional drinks are hot and getting hotter. As manufacturers of children’s beverages innovate, package designers should likewise innovate. They are.
Bottom line: parents are searching for healthier beverages for their kids, but kids don’t buy into “healthier” unless “healthier” looks like fun.
Moms and other gatekeepers are more interested than ever in health benefits and battling obesity; low sugar, low salt, organic, immune-boosting and nutrient rich beverages get their vote. Expect this to be a strong trend in 2010 and going forward.
Cool packaging can deliver fun for kids, with health benefits parents are looking for. New marketplace packaging includes colorful aseptics, “crayons,” soda-like cans and bottles and totally ingenious structural designs.
For inspired packaging, check out Y Water. Y Water is an organic functional drink filled with vitamins and minerals that comes in four choices. It’s packaged in brightly colored 100% recyclable bottles. Better yet: they’re 100% reusable.
These “Y knots” can be interconnected to create forms. Kids can build cool forms as they would with building blocks or bricks, and then send digital pictures of their creations to the company to be posted on its Y Knots Gallery. How cool is that? Is more of this the future of kids’ packaging?
Froose is another interesting beverage: an organic combination of whole grains and fruit deliver nutrition parents like in aseptic packaging children love. The cartoonish fruit moose delivers fiber and fun. No empty calories here.
All-natural Crayons fruit juice drinks are packaged as giant coloring crayons. Concept: refreshing snacks or sport drinks in cans to go. The “all natural” and “no high fructose corn syrup” package communications ensure parents’ approval. The message again: few empty calories.
For the kids who are into carbonation, The Switch is a great choice. The 100% juice mixed with sparkling water for fizz, packaged in “old time” glass soda bottles as well as pop top cans make a modern statement. These beverages are into NO. No added sugar, no corn syrup, no preservatives, no artificial color. Colorful graphics and fun combinations of fruit juices make these a hit with kids.
Questions:
• Do you think these trendy children’s beverages and kid-friendly package solutions are true innovations with staying power? Or do you think they’re a fad?
• Marketing genius or not: making healthier beverage choices parents want, simultaneously attracting kids with unusual, colorful packaging? What do you think?
• Do you think some of these structural packaging designs might get pushback from retailers because they’re harder to merchandise; that is, harder to cut into conventional shelf sets easily?
• Would you like to share your observations about kids’ foods/beverages and packaging in general? Go for it!
I’d love to hear from you.
Tags: Advertising, consumer packaging, Crayons, Froose, fruit drinks, Innovation, Kids, Marketing, The Switch, Y Water
Ted, this is a plain smart strategy. I absolutely love what Y water is doing. Talk about the cool factor. Just goes to show how important design considerations should be in new product introduction and keeping your old brand fresh.
Hi Paul,
Thanks for weighing in here. Agreed: as parents we want our children to consume healthier beverages than what they’re likely to choose on their own. Packaging solutions like this make it easier for our kids to buy into better choices simply because these drinks are cool and fun. At the same time, we can feel good about them, too. It’s a win-win, right?
Brilliant concept; I have little doubt other companies will employ a similar strategy at kids. Perhaps even adults, with multi-use products from containers. Creating “social objects” out of boring objects, but will it last or is it just the 21st century’s first Chia Pet?
My only downside is that we’re producing more containers to increase landfill and garbage or perhaps these could biodegrade?
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Good points, Giles. Some smart designers have also turned garbage into art–to your point. Coming back to packaging: you’re right. Products shouldn’t be the only beneficiaries of innovation. Packaging should also. Structural packaging concepts will likely become more and more important. Design consultants and brand managers do need to heed one thing, though: retailers’ needs. Brilliant packaging is meaningless if it doesn’t come to market. Meaning: if it doesn’t work in retail shelf sets, what’s the point?
Thanks for weighing in, Giles. I appreciate your comments.
Hey, Ted!
Since I’m a mom, I wanted a good look at the Y Water, its pricing, where to buy it, what customers said, etc.
Looks like it was introduced on the West coast and in Whole Foods. I did a retailer search to see if I could buy it in my area and guess what — only Toys R Us carries it right now!
In this Nov. 2007 BusinessWeek article, they feature two of the drinks you mentioned. And they say that the “value-added beverage” industry is booming.
But I dunno… $1.69 for one 9-ounce drink for a kid? (Knots sold separately!) And $24 for 24 cans of fizzy grape drinks? I think the canned beverages might appeal to affluent parents.
I’ll be surprised if the Y Water lasts more than a couple of years at that price, though. It’s a telling sign that one of the reviewers on Amazon said she bought it on clearance! Others said they bought it for the novel container and would never buy it again because of the bad flavor.
We’ll stick with our milk, water, and an occasional Sprite here.
Right, Shelley. When some of these drinks debut, they sometimes have limited distribution at first. Interesting thing about the Amazon clearance. “Bad flavor” can mean a lot of things: if it isn’t overly sweet, kids will likely think it tastes “bad”. Or the batch purchased at Amazon, might have been slightly off in the manufacturing process. When it comes to “cleaner” food and beverage products, consumers expect they’ll cost more. Whether the additional cost on certain products is worth it or not, is up to the individual consumer. As I always say: consumers vote on products with their wallets. If Y Water doesn’t live up to expectations, it will either have to be rethought or it won’t make it. But what it does point to is the future of children’s products. Thanks for adding a good deal to my post, Shelley. It’s great to look at the pros and cons of every issue.