Energy Drinks: Threatened By Health Concerns?

Between the late 1990s and early 2000s, energy drinks seemed to be all the rage in the Nigerian beverage market. Many brands, both indigenous and foreign, actively jostled to make their presence known in a fiercely contested market. The market is quieter now, and many of these brands have fizzled away. Seeni Durojaiye examines the probable cause of dearth in this relatively young and hitherto vibrant market.

Today’s busy executives often rely on energy drinks to re-invigorate them as they pursue daily targets. It is therefore not surprising that many brands in this category parade names such as Red Bull, Power Horse, Monster Energy Drink, Full Throttle Energy Drink, and Spark Energy Drink.
While energy drinks first berthed in Nigeria in the late 1990s, they only began enjoying widespread patronage with the launch of Power Horse which came into the country under franchise in 2005. This was followed by Red Bull, then many other competing brands. And like the first two, most of the popular brands are imported.
Surprisingly, it appears many brands in this market are becoming stillbirths, dying even before they are fully born. While some attribute the reasons to stifling competition, others blame the situation on “poorly executed market entry strategies or unrealistic market penetration plans and expectations.” A source in one of the companies blames the state of the economy for the inability of the drinks to find their footing in the market citing “dwindling spending income.”

Harmful Side Effects
All energy drinks do not all contain the same ingredients, so consumers react differently to the different brands. The drinks are mainly composed of guarana, taurine and caffeine, which are the main ingredients that produce the increased spurts of energy. However, these energy boosters are mixed with other ingredients that sometimes have unpleasant after-effects on the human body systems as well as produce short-term memory.
Some drinks are made with a high percentage of carbohydrates. This makes it harder for food and nutrients to be absorbed into the consumer’s bloodstream and slows down fluid absorption. Medical journals say that this could even make the additional energy lower than was advertised or expected and less effective. Accordingly, energy drinks are not advised for people in competitive sports.
Caffeine is known to have both laxative and diuretic effects on the body. As a substance that leads to increased urination, the consumer often loses the stimulant through this process leaving him/her at the risk of dehydration.
Caffeine also increases heart rate and body temperature. Too much consumption of such energy drinks can cause irregular heartbeats, excessive sweating, jitters and anxiousness, which is hardly ideal if the consumer is preparing for high concentration events such as examinations and other competitive activities. Worse still, high amounts of caffeine can reduce human coordination and balance as well as cause sleeping disorders. These tops the list of why children, pregnant women and people with heart conditions are advised to avoid energy drinks.
Energy drinks also tend to be packed with a lot of fructose and sugar. While these are good for short-term buzz as they quickly stimulate the nervous system, drinkers are often left feeling more fatigued than before they took the drink after the sugar wears off. Regular consumption of energy drinks with high sugar contents also leads to dental health problems such as cavities.
Mixing energy drinks with alcohol, which M2 findings reveal has become a fad amongst consumers, increases the chances of dehydration. Energy drink cocktails cause drowsiness, loss of coordination and slow reflexes. When taking energy drinks with alcohol, it’s hard to determine just how much alcohol is actually consumed.
However, the story is not all doom and gloom. There are some known positive effects on the body. Drinks that contain Echinacea are said to help bolster the immune system, while energy drinks containing Ginkgo biloba and ginseng improve memory.
With the above revelations, informed sources disclose that a more health conscious public might be responsible for the downward fortunes of the once vibrant industry leaving only about three brands – Power Horse, Red Bull, and Hype – to satisfy consumer needs.
M2 investigates into the current status of some of the popular launches to ascertain their status quo.

Power Horse
This brand ignited the hitherto dormant Nigerian energy drink market with its bold entry in 2005. Its bold entry and relative weak or lack of competition helped it enjoy unrivalled visibility as well as the largest market share for a long time.
In a chat with M2, Ammar Anis, the General Manager, Marketing, Charvet Nigeria Limited, the in-country franchisee, explains that the brand is targeted at everybody with emphasis on those that can afford it. He adds that Power Horse is imported and different in value and price from other soft drinks in the country.
When asked to rank the brand’s position in the market, Anis insisted that consumers say Power Horse is the number one brand in its category adding, “I hope so, I pray so and I’ll keep working hard to be number one in my category.”
Besides advertising, the brand has also embarked on various marketing platforms to grow its market share. Power Horse sponsors various comedy and musical shows. It also holds regular in-bar activations such as Power Horse Nite where target consumers are presented with the opportunity of sampling the product in a warm atmosphere.
M2 investigations reveal that the brand invests heavily in shows and event promotions, the most recent being the Valentine Party it hosted in conjunction with DeeTee and Metro Park at Isaac John Street, Ikeja, Lagos.

Red Bull
Red Bull is also a top contender for the leadership spot, enjoying almost head-on acceptability in the market. The brand also enjoys great visibility both in the open market and at bars.
Its marketing activities include in-bar activations, spot advertising and The Red Bulletin, a monthly journal circulated among brand patrons. The bulletin keeps consumers up-to-date on the activities of popular global iconic brands particularly in sports and entertainment including  Formula One. The active and successful lifestyles of these celebrities largely resonate with the ambitions of the target market.
As part of its market penetration strategy, Red Bull sponsored an in-bar promo to help bartenders up their art. Two professional barmen were brought into the country from Europe to teach their Nigerian counterparts the finer arts of the trade.
In a chat with M2, a source at the brand’s Ikeja office explains that the target market is mainly lovers of ‘long drinks’. Accordingly, most bars now have a cocktail of drinks made from a mixture of Red Bull and long drinks like Hennessey and Red Label. While acknowledging the pioneering efforts of Power Horse in the market segment, the source says, “We treat all competition as equal and don’t see them (Power Horse) as a major threat just because they got to the market before us.”
M2 also gathers that in strict adherence to its marketing strategy, the brand does not undertake street activations just as its television commercials are restricted to animations.

Burn Energy Drink
Burn Energy Drink was introduced into the market by Coca Cola Nigeria in mid 2006. M2 findings show that the energy drink is one of more than 500 non-alcoholic drinks on the stable of the global Coca Cola brand, imported into the country to compete and garner its share of the market. Barely six years later, has it remained doubtful if this objective is being met.
In his reaction to M2′s enquiry on the perceived low visibility of the brand, Clem Ugorji, the company’s communications manager, insists that “Burn has not disappeared from the marketplace. It is very much available in select channels (hotels, restaurants and night clubs) where it is sold in keeping with the brand’s positioning strategy”.
He maintains that the thinking that Burn has low market presence or visibility is wrong. He avers: “This is a wrong perception. Burn is positioned as a premium brand for a niche market and its distribution is deliberately through the select channels mentioned above where Burn has remained a strong player. Burn is marketed through targeted communication in-channel. This approach has continued to deliver on the brand objectives and business targets. Burn’s visibility remains very strong within its trade channels and target consumers. Being a niche brand, Burn does not necessarily employ the mass medium in its marketing communications.”
However, he declined to name specific hotels, restaurants and night clubs where the drink is available; neither did he mention any particular activation or marketing event organized to shore up the energy drink’s market share.

Guru Energy Drink
Guru entered the Nigerian market in 2008. Its entry was announced with great fanfare at Protea Hotel Maryland, Lagos. Several dignitaries were in attendance including representatives from the Lagos State Government and the National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration (NAFDAC).
The brand entry carried much promise as the promoters, Grand Oak, a sister company of Nigerian Distilleries Limited, insisted it contained no additives. Prior to the launch, promotional sampling sessions held in Lagos, Abuja and Owerri. Thereafter, the brand embarked on in-bar activations in select places one of which was the Lagos secretariat of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ).
However, nothing has been heard of the product ever since. Though a source at Grand Oak says the brand is still doing well, M2 findings reveal that it is scarce in the open markets, popular bars and night clubs. All efforts to speak with key officials of Grand Oak were unsuccessful and repeated calls were not picked or returned.

Climax Energy Drink
Nothing best underscores the lack of visibility of this brand than the fact that it remains oblivious even to brand writers. The only confirmation proffered was from a key official (who prefers anonymity) of brand owners, Nigerian Breweries Plc. “Yes we have an energy drink. It is called Climax. It is an imported drink.”
M2 findings also corroborate this. As reported last week, there is a resurgent push to re-launch the brand into the market. This means that NB is gearing up to test the market with its energy drink.
Besides sales buses and occasional sightings at few open markets, M2 was unable to gather any information about many of the other brands.