A beloved beverage that Coca-Cola dropped from its portfolio last year is making a comeback under new ownership and a new name. Zico coconut water was discontinued amid Coca-Cola's significant product cuts last year, but has now been bought back by its original creator, Mark Rampolla, and his company PowerPlant Ventures, for an undisclosed sum, reports Food Business News.
Rampolla founded Zico Beverages LLC in and ended up selling the brand to Coca-Cola in , at the height of the coconut water craze. But, the demand for coconut water has been on a steady decline over the last decade, and Zico was never able to close the gap between it and the leading competitor in the field, Vita Coco. Still, Rampolla believes his product, and the category at large, still enjoy substantial popularity with health-conscious consumers. Packed with five essential electrolytes, this coconut water is refreshing, with a slightly sweet taste.
Can't decide between sparkling water or coconut water? Neither can we! While you're at it, check out their new Pressed Coconut Water line for all the benefits of coconut water plus a boost of coconutty flavor. The can might read "coconut juice," but don't be deterred — this one is made entirely from non-GMO coconut water from Thailand. Made with natural coconut water and coconut pulp, Taste Nirvana is as close as it gets to the coconut water you might imagine buying from a roadside vendor or at a beach hut in the tropics.
If you can get past the somewhat chewy texture of a bit of pulp in your beverage, you'll enjoy Taste Nirvana's remarkably sweet flavor. A newer coconut water brand to hit shelves, U. We love the super nutty, savory, and crisp flavor of Rebel Kitchen. Gift Ideas. Type keyword s to search. Word had leaked over the weekend that Coca-Cola was discontinuing Zico, the coconut water brand Rampolla had sold to the beverage giant in Old friends and former colleagues wanted to know how he was taking the news.
The father of two daughters, Rampolla had often joked that Zico was his son. So he felt a twinge of sadness about the brand's foundering under Coke's leadership.
But that emotion quickly changed to excitement and hope. The year-old entrepreneur reached out to Coke's mergers and acquisitions group right away, initiating what would become weeks of secret negotiations to reacquire Zico.
On New Year's Eve, Rampolla's phone rang once again. That night, he celebrated not just the arrival of but also another chance to compete in the coconut water business. Rampolla now serves as chairman of the board of the newly renamed Zico Rising, representing PowerPlant Ventures, which he co-founded in , and which led the acquisition from Coke.
Focused on sustainability and plant-based food and beverage products, PowerPlant has invested in billion-dollar companies including Beyond Meat and Thrive Market. In a matter of months, Rampolla appears to have positioned Zico Rising for success. He's still determined to build it into the leading coconut water company in the world, but more than anything, he's just grateful for the opportunity. Rampolla didn't really get anything wrong the first time.
Sales in the category have suffered single-digit declines every year since peaking in , according to market research firm Euromonitor, but the product remains a pantry staple for millions of consumers. In , however, Zico's market share stood at just 4 percent, dwarfed by the 60 percent share of longtime competitor Vita Coco, the top coconut water brand for more than a decade.
After Rampolla started selling Zico to yoga studios around the city, Kirban infiltrated the market guerrilla-style, taking yoga classes and passing out free samples.
After Kirban succeeded in placing Vita Coco in the city's bodegas, evangelizing the brand while zipping around town on inline skates, Rampolla went after the same stores. Wherever one would go, the other would follow. A one-time Peace Corps volunteer in Central America--where every nation is among the 85 worldwide that grow coconuts--Rampolla routinely drank coconut water while working as an executive in the El Salvador outpost of the U.
He was the head of Latin American and Caribbean operations for IP's beverage packaging division, a position he held from to , after which he decided he wanted to start his own business. Rampolla had lots of ideas, but coconut water stood out.
Consumers were already looking for healthier beverage options, and coconut water was a natural product with less sugar than traditional sports drinks and the benefit of abundant potassium and electrolytes. An avid cyclist, hiker, and swimmer, Rampolla was already passionate about the product and felt it could have a positive impact around the world. Though Kirban had also encountered the drink in the tropics, he ended up on the path to becoming a coconut water entrepreneur more by chance.
0コメント