Glacéau
Glacéau is a water company that plays by a different set of rules than it’s other corporate competitors. This is evident when one first opens their corporate information page and is greeted by simple text in all small letters with an opening sentence that states, “glacéau’s boring history”. From this very first encounter one might be able to see why Glacéau’s products have become so popular among the younger, athletic demographic.
Glacéau was founded in 1996 when Darius Brikoff created SmartWater. SmartWater is a “zero-calorie, vapor-distilled, electrolyte-enhanced water. Just the purest, cleanest water possible with added electrolytes.” (Glacéau) What started off as just a new way to offer water quickly grew into a small company that was selling water to health food stores and specialty retailers in the New York area. In 1998 FruitWater was added and by the year 2000 Darius added the now famous VitaminWater to his company and the waters began to be sold nationwide.
The new VitaminWater is a “great-tasting, healthy enhanced water that is packed with nutrients. In addition to providing the perfect compliment to everyone’s less-than-perfect diet, each VitaminWater variety has a unique combination of nutrients to deliver a specific benefit to get you through your day.” (Glacéau) The VitaminWater brand was what really helped Glacéau to get on the map. The water was first promoted by rapper 50 Cent and afterwards every young 20-something was enamored with the brand and began drinking it. Today VitaminWater, with it's many different flavors and kitschy names, continues to market heavily to the younger demographic with their fun advertising campaigns and prevalently placed ads in magazines such as US Weekly, GQ, Vogue, and sports magazines.
After the success of SmartWater, VitaminWater, and FruitWater domestically, Glacéau launched their products internationally in 2008 by introducing them into the UK, Australian, and French markets. The continued success both domestically and internationally has helped Glacéau to “experience triple digit growth for five straight years and according to industry reports (no we didn’t write them) is poised to become one of the biggest brands in the history of beverages.” (Glacéau)
Today the Glacéau brand and it’s products are created and distributed by Energy Brands, a company created by Darius and his partner Mike. Another beverage giant in the industry has also taken notice of Glacéau’s prominence as Energy Brands is now a privately held subsidiary of the Coca-Cola Co.
