What Happened to SoBe Drinks? Consumers Want Answers
SoBe Drinks Are No Longer Available — How the Brand Crumbled
SoBe drinks seem to have disappeared following declining gross sales and a few controversy. Was COVID-19 the final straw for the as soon as common drink?
By Alex WestFeb. 19 2024, Published 9:36 a.m. ET
Another tasty beverage option has disappeared from shelves. SoBe, an assortment of teas and fruit juices, is nowhere to be discovered. It seems like the emblem dropped off the face of the earth entirely.
SoBe won't had been the most well liked drink, however the public ceaselessly calls for a comeback. That being said, the brand likely would possibly not be coming again anytime quickly since there were a couple of problems with the brand. Keep reading for all of the main points on what happened to SoBe drinks.
What happened to SoBe drinks?
SoBe, at first referred to as South Beach Beverage Company, began in 1995 and changed into well-liked in school dorms for its boosting power effect. Starting with only one flavor, the company briefly added numerous flavors which attracted a pretty sizable collection of consumers.
It did not take long for primary producers to take understand. In 2000, PepsiCo got the corporate and assumed the function of making and distributing the logo. According to CNN, the company shelled out $370 million to extend its selection of non-carbonated drinks.
"We believe that the creative, entrepreneurial SoBe culture will work well alongside Pepsi-Cola Company," said Gary Rodkin, Pepsi-Cola North America president and CEO, in a remark on the time. "We intend to give SoBe the freedom and autonomy to preserve its unique culture, plus direct access to the advantages of the larger Pepsi-Cola systems."
There had been hopes for SoBe to dominate over Amazon Iced Tea and Snapple. However, beating out Amazon's dedication to $0.99 drinks proved to be tough.
Ironically, SoBe's founder told CNN that he didn't think the drink was just a fad. While it caught around for over a decade, the demand for the drink in the long run sank.
Why precisely the emblem went defunct continues to be slightly of a thriller as PepsiCo hasn't addressed it straight-on. The brand's website is still functioning and describes how their tale started... by no means bringing up an end.
In 2015, there was a extraordinary thriller and controversy that got here out of the SoBe world. Photos went viral where other people confirmed the cap of a SoBe bottle which had a message revealed underneath. It mentioned: "Help me. Trapped in SoBe factory."
With so many instances of the similar eerie message, consumers started to get fascinated about what was once in point of fact going down at the ones bottling factories. "Hi there, we're sorry that our cap slogan caused you concern, that was certainly not our intention," the corporate defined in a observation to Buzzfeed News.
"These sayings are intended to give our consumers a little smile or pause for thought, not offense, while they enjoy their favorite SoBe beverage. We are planning on removing this cap slogan from our current rotation, however, it will take a while for existing stock to run through the market."
While SoBe stayed in the marketplace for several more years, the drinks slowly began to disappear from stores. What after all ended the emblem? It's in point of fact arduous to say, however many of us speculate that COVID-19 brought about manufacturing delays and, therefore, tanked the drink altogether.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pbXSramam6Ses7p6wqikaKhfrLWiwIyhmKmolaOypXnTqGSsp5KaeqW%2ByKeirA%3D%3D