Red Bull give you wings!

In 1982, Dietrich Mateschitz learned about so-called “tonic drinks”, which enjoyed wide popularity in Asia. While he was sitting sitting in the bar at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong he got the idea of marketing those particular functional drinks outside Asia. This was not a new idea, but a variation on the Lucozade theme, another popular energy drink marketed by Smith Kline Beecham. However, Red Bull included other ingredients to achieve a different flavour.

So it was that in 1984, Mateschitz founded the Red Bull GmbH company. He fine-tuned the product, developed a unique marketing concept and started selling Red Bull Energy Drink on the Austrian market in 1987. Red Bull rapidly gained in popularity, giving people wings right from the start. In 1992, Red Bull touched down in its first foreign market, in Hungary. Today, Red Bull is energizing over 100 countries around the globe, such that many superstores have copied the idea with their own brand products, which invariably are inferior in one aspect or another.


Red Bull energy drink original alu can


Red Bull Energy Drink
Category: US Energy Drinks; Packaging: 8.3 oz can

While our opinion on Red Bull's flavor hasn't changed -- it is truly painful to drink -- we will give Red Bull credit where credit is due. Namely, the brand power that this product has created is truly amazing. Many people in the industry may hate Red Bull, but without Red Bull there wouldn't even be a market for the other 150+ products currently crowding the shelves. However, Red Bull faces some potential bumps in the road in the coming 24 months. First, the product has completely oversaturated the market -- Red Bull is in just about anywhere that you can fit a mini-cooler as well as mass merchandisers, bike shops, bars, etc, etc, etc. This could result in Red Bull becoming passe by removing the "cool" factor that made the brand so successful. Second, while other companies are improving formulations, flavors, and packaging, Red Bull stays the same. Will consumers find something that truly works better? Third, from our point of view Red Bull has a less-than-stellar industry reputation -- and many people are praying for their demise as a result. Finally, given that Red Bull is a one trick pony (compared to others such as Coke and Pepsi), the party is in serious jeopardy if sales start to slump, a price war starts, or press over energy drink health concerns start to proliferate (hypothetically speaking). Overall, tremendous brand power right now, but does it have true staying power to last another 5 years as number one?