Liptonice is given lemon twist in 4m UK relaunch

The makers of iced tea brand Liptonice are bowing to British consumers’ reluctance to drink cold tea by increasing the lemon flavour of Liptonice.

As revealed in Marketing Week (MW May 12), the three companies behind Liptonice – PepsiCo, Van den Burgh Foods and Britvic – are relaunching the iced lemon tea drink with a 4m marketing spend over six months.

The companies say the new drink will contain less tea flavouring, although the drink will continue to be described as “iced lemon tea”. The makers have scrapped the earlier advertising and packaging which targeted 20 to 34-year-olds.

Instead, a 2m TV and cinema campaign through J Walter Thompson will position Liptonice for 16 to 24-year-olds as a trendy alternative to other carbonates. The cans have also been redesigned, scrapping the original picture of iced tea.

Britvic director of marketing Steve Kay says research shows UK drinkers object to “overt tea flavours in cold drinks”.

The new Liptonice is being introduced to the trade next month. Kay would only say that new volumes targets were “realistic”. At Liptonice’s 6m launch a year ago, all three parties pledged volumes would top 18 million litres in the first year. In fact, Liptonice sold 11.25 million litres.