 In 1965, the University of Florida Gators football team was experiencing severe fatigue caused by the heat of the Florida swamp and the intense physical strain of playing the sport.
Upon conducting several tests, doctors and scientists discovered that the team's performance was suffering because team members were not properly hydrated. In fact, most of the players failed to use the restroom even once during an entire football game.
This research led to the development of a carbohydrate-electrolyte infused drink called Gatorade. The Gator's new sports drink proved invaluable. Game after game, the Gators outplayed their opponents, especially during the second half. Before long, coaches on opposing teams were asking about the beverage. And the rest is history.
Since Gatorade's inception, many other manufacturers have introduced sports drinks creating more than $900 million per year beverage category within retailers across the United States. The Quaker Oats Company purchased Gatorade in 1983 and its share has grown to a commanding 85 percent of the total sport drinks category. Its Web site boasts worldwide sales of $2 billion per year.
Other large brands in the category include Powerade, SoBe Sport, and All Sport. Dollar sales for the sports drinks category have been steadily increasing in recent years and are up 9 percent this year vs. a year ago. Data Based on Information Resources, Inc., Shoppers Hotline household panel data, roughly 33 percent of U.S. households purchased sports drinks during the 52 weeks ending May 19, 2002. The average household purchased 5.5 gallons of sports drinks during the one-- year time frame, which translates into about 22 32-oz. bottles. As expected, households buying the product numerous times drove sales rather than households buying a large quantity on one or two shopping trips.
Among the households buying these sports drinks, 20 percent purchased more than one brand. Products like Gatorade, Powerade and All Sport are heavily marketed to professional and amateur athletes who need a beverage that will replenish their bodies after intense exercise. In fact, among households who buy sports drinks, sports drinks represent 30 percent of all of their shelf-stable drink and juice purchases. That figure is significant considering that sports drinks only represent 16 percent of total shelf-stable drinks/juices sales.
New developments
Recently, there has been a wave of new beverage products introduced into the marketplace such as flavored waters and other drinks enhanced with vitamins, minerals and even caffeine, and more of these new drinks are on the way.
Some examples of new products are Quaker's Propel, which is a low-calorie, flavored water fortified with vitamins. Veryfine also makes the Fruit20 brand, which is a zero-calorie fruit-flavored product laced with vitamins and herbal additives. Dannon's Fluoride to Go brand is a fluoridated brand marketed to parents concerned that their kids aren't getting enough fluoride for their teeth.
Some of these products will surely steal some sales from sports drinks, however, IRI data suggests that these new items will create new consumer niches within the category. After all, Gatorade and a few other brands really own the "athlete re-hydration" space. In fact, the average drug store carries 10 Gatorade SKUs and the average supermarket carries 32 Gatorade SKUs for that reason.
Retailers should try to find new shelf space for the new products as opposed to taking shelf space from existing sports drinks like Gatorade, Powerade and All Sport. A potential source of space might be from energy drinks, such as Red Bull, whose sales started out strong but have been gradually flattening.
Source: www.badders.com |
