Robinsons Fruit Spring future in doubt after supermarket delisting

The future of Robinsons Fruit Spring is under threat following the decision by supermarkets to pull the product.

Robinsons Fruit Spring is a still, water-based drink aimed at 20- to 25-year-old women, and was only launched by Britvic Soft Drinks in January this year (MW June 5, 2003).

But it is now being taken off the shelves in Asda and its presence is severely reduced in other retailers such as Waitrose and Morrisons. Insiders say it has been a poor seller due to a combination of factors including price and consumer confusion over the proposition.

However, a Britvic spokeswoman says that the company is “very pleased” with sales so far. She adds that the product is coming off Asda shelves for a short period in a bid to have it placed in chiller cabinets instead. “It’s an impulse brand that needs to go into chiller cabinets and we believe we will be back in the store in a couple of months,” she says.

But one expert says that sales have been “appalling” and “the public is not aware of it as an adult drink”. Britvic spent &£1.8m on advertising Robinsons Fruit Spring in the year to June with a campaign devised by Bartle Bogle Hegarty (Nielsen Media Research).

Britvic axed its Robinsons Fruit Break ready-to-drink squash brand in September last year to make way for the new product (MW September 25, 2003).