– History:
– Fruitopia was a pet project of Cokes former marketing chief, Sergio Zyman.
– Initial marketing budget of $30 million helped Fruitopia gain hype in the mid-1990s.
– Time magazine named Fruitopia one of the Top 10 New Products of 1994.
– The brands flagship flavor was Strawberry Passion Awareness.
– Fruitopia vending machines appeared in schools, college campuses, and McDonalds.
– Advertising:
– Fruitopia TV ads featured animated fruit imagery in colorful kaleidoscope patterns.
– Ads included idealistic aphorisms reminiscent of hippie poetry.
– Background music by artists like The Muffs, Kate Bush, and the Cocteau Twins.
– Recurring slogan was Fruitopia: for the mind, body, and planet.
– Example ad copy encouraged drinking Raspberry Psychic Lemonade.
– Trial in Greece:
– Greek writer Eugene Trivizas won a legal battle against Coca-Cola in 1997.
– Coca-Cola was prevented from registering Fruitopia as a trademark for soft drinks.
– The court ruled that Coca-Cola unlawfully appropriated Trivizas intellectual property.
– Coca-Cola appealed, but the court of appeal ruled in Trivizas favor again in 1999.
– Use of Trivizas intellectual property as a trademark for soft drinks was prohibited.
– 2000s drawback:
– Fruitopia struggled to be profitable by the end of the 1990s.
– In 2003, the Fruitopia line was mostly discontinued in the US.
– Some flavors were revamped under the Minute Maid brand.
– Minute Maid’s success contributed to Fruitopia’s declining sales.
– PepsiCo faced a similar situation with their Fruit Works line.
– See also:
– 1990s portal.
– Snapple.
– OK Soda.
– References from Giaimo, Cara, PR Newswire Association, Orlando Sentinel, and Vending Market Watch News.
Fruitopia is a fruit-flavored drink introduced by the Coca-Cola Company's successful Minute Maid brand in 1994 and targeted at teens and young adults. According to New York Times business reports, it was invented as part of a push by Minute Maid to capitalize on the success of Snapple and other flavored tea drinks. The brand gained substantial hype in the mid-1990s before enduring lagging sales by the decade's end. While still available in Canada and Australia as a juice brand, in 2003, Fruitopia was phased out in most of the United States where it had struggled for several years. However, select flavors have since been revamped under Minute Maid. Use of the Fruitopia brand name continues through various beverages in numerous countries, including some McDonald's restaurant locations in the United States, which carry the drink to this day.
 The original Fruitopia logo | |
| Type | Fruit-flavored beverage |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Minute Maid (The Coca-Cola Company) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Introduced | 1994 |
| Discontinued | 2003 (United States only) |
| Flavor | Strawberry Passion Awareness, Kiwiberry Ruckus, Beachside Blast Fruit, Blueberry Watermelon Wisdom, Orange Undercurrent, Tangerine Wavelength, Raspberry Psychic Lemonade, Fruit Integration |