Collagen boost: +PW sets sights on ‘huge’ China market with single serve RTD beverages
In western markets, +PW is perhaps best known for its Protein Water products targeting consumers looking to replenish protein post-workout. Here in Asia though, the firm has opted for a major push of its Collagen Booster drink as it believes that there is even greater promise for this.
“We still consider the Collagen Booster as part of the Protein Water range, but where that is generally more designed to target muscle recovery post-sports and post-workouts, this was designed as a beauty product,” +PW parent company Millenium Group Director Rob Furse told FoodNavigator-Asia.
“We use marine collagen peptides with lotus flower and jasmine blended in to support collagen development in the body and beautify nails, hair and skin - and this is the product we strongly believe has a lot of potential in Asia and the Middle East.
“China in particular is a very important market to us as we are aware that consumers here place a lot of focus on beauty trends and health and wellness, so are keen on products that can aid in these functions.”
This is especially pertinent in the case of collagen, where Furse described a ‘huge’ market in the country but also a significant market gap and opportunity to fill this.
“Collagen is really huge in China, there is no doubt about this - but what is really lacking in the market is collagen in a format like this that is easy to drink, and tastes good,” he said.
“In Asia and particularly in China, it is very important to ensure that the taste is good as consumers are unlikely to accept a healthy product if it does not taste good, which was one of the major challenges we faced due to using marine collagen which can have a strong fishy smell as well as a bitter aftertaste if used in higher amounts.
“This is what we have managed to overcome with the use of the lotus flower and jasmine blend, giving the product a mild taste with a fragrant aroma that appeals to the senses, enabling us to really crack this big health and wellness market in China which is really trending right now.”
The firm works with major online and offline retailers in the country from Sam’s Club to Walmart to JD, and has strong confidence in its evaluation of local trends and demands for a beverage can can confer both health and beauty support based on its experience.
Moving forward, Furse also sees great potential beyond just China and into South East Asia, where consumers are also increasingly on the lookout for healthy products.
“For Asia, we will certainly start with China based on the healthy beverage trends here first,” he said.
“But beyond that we will look more closely at other markets in this region such as Singapore, Thailand and certainly Vietnam - then maybe later in the year Japan as well.”
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