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Guarana.com news
Kuat Goes North
ATLANTA, October 18, 2002 - Coca-Cola Co. is adding another drink to a
growing list of beverages it sells in the U.S.: Guarana.
The beverage giant plans to test market Kuat, a carbonated soft drink that is one of its
biggest sellers in Brazil. The drink will be sold in 20-ounce bottles in Texas and Florida
starting in mid-October, according to a Coke spokesman. There are no plans yet for a
national launch, the spokesman said.
A popular sweet drink in Brazil made from the extract of a red berry that grows in
Venezuela and Northern Brazil and is high in caffeine, guarana originally got off to a
slow start in the U.S. PepsiCo Inc. introduced its own version of guarana, called Josta,
in 1997 in the U.S., but discontinued it when it didn't sell in large volume.
Guarana has gained popularity in the U.S. since then, along with other beverages that
provide caffeine or energy boosts, such as energy drinks and sports drinks.
Named a sun god for an Amazon Indian tribe in Brazil, Kuat (pronounced "Kwatch")
has become one of the leading guarana beverages in Brazil, and Coke even introduced a diet
version of the drink in Brazil in 1999. Coke also began marketing its guarana under
another name, Senzao, in Mexico, earlier this year.
Kayapo Power Bar - WOW!
Brazil, March 2002 -- We at Guarana.com are not impressed easily, but
Steve Baker, president of Kayapo.com,
managed to do just that. We met Steve and his wife Marinella in a restaurant in Rio de
Janeiro, a few days after we celebrated New Year's Eve at Copacabana Beach. Steve gave us
a sample of the Kayapo Power Bar, an energy bar containing Guarana. Folks, this is
something you *must* try. Not only has this power bar an excellent taste (finally a power
bar where sugar isn't the main ingredient!), it gives you an energy boost that can't be
beaten. At the time of writing this product isn't in stock yet, but you can him an e-mail
and ask when this product will hit the market. We will keep annoying this company until
they send us a box :-)
Coca Cola sells Guarana extract to Mexico
Brazil, January 11, 2002 -- Coca Cola began exporting the Brazilian fruit
extract, guarana, used in many Brazilian soft drinks, to Mexico this year. The extract is
used in the production of Senzao,
a soft drink launched by Coca-Cola in Mexico in March last year.
Exports of guarana to Mexico totalled US$500mil between April and November 2001. Mexico
and Brazil are, respectively, the second and third largest markets for Coca-Cola after the
US and the company plans to continue investing in these markets, with the introduction of
new products and repackaging.
AmBev launches Guarana drink in Puerto Rico
São Paulo, Brazil, January 8, 2002 - Brazilian beverage giant AmBev on
Tuesday said it had launched its fizzy Amazon berry soft drink Guarana Antarctica in
Puerto Rico, the second stage in its softly-softly bid to make the brand a global player.
PepsiCo Inc would take care of distribution, according to an agreement signed in 1999 in
which AmBev, the world's fifth biggest drinks company and No.4 brewer, would in turn
distribute Pepsi products in Brazil.
AmBev, the product of a 1999 mega-merger of Brazil's two biggest brewers Brahma and
Antarctica, said it and Pepsi would split a planned $1.5 million investment in the
promotion of Guarana on the Caribbean island over the next two years.
AmBev said in a statement that it hoped to sell one million litres of the drink in 2002
and win 1 percent of Puerto Rico's small 480 million litre market within 10 years.
The company said its launch in Portugal in July, 2001, had surpassed expectations of
market penetration. Guarana was available at 12,000 points of sale by September, beating
the aim of 10,000 outlets by the end of the year.
Online Brazilian shop opens in The Netherlands
Almere, Netherlands, January 1, 2002 - Brazilian shop Finalmente Brasil
opened its virtual doors. Although the first orders won't be shipped until February,
ordering Brazilian products, such as Guarana Antarctica, is already possible. Finalmente
Brasil ships all over Europe.
Finalmente Brasil can be found at http://www.finalmentebrasil.nl/ . At this time, their Web site is in
Portuguese only, but an English version is expected to be online within a few weeks.
European servers online
December 19, 2001 - In order to give visitors from Europe and Asia a
faster connection, we installed new high-speed servers in the UK. These new mirrors can be
found at http://www.guarana-europe.com/
and http://www.guarana.org.uk/.
When the translated versions of guarana.com are ready, we will upload them there. Because
of the holiday season, the scheduled translations probably won't be availalable until the
end of january 2002.
Scheduled translations
November 6, 2001 - A few team members of Guarana.com started translating
this Web site into Portuguese and Dutch. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil
(where guarana comes from), and Dutch is the official language of the Netherlands
(where Guarana.com is located). We expect both translations to be online before the end of
this year. No other languages are scheduled at this time, unless we can find volunteers
who want to translate Guarana.com for us into German, Spanish, and French.
New Forum now online
October 23, 2001 - New forum is now online. Let us know what you think!
New Forum
October 20, 2001 - Unfortunately, the old forum (provided by an external service) became
unreliable, and we didn't like the lack of support and the content of some banners either.
We already installed a new forum that runs on our own server, and are in the process of
finetuning and testing. There will be more topics available, such as 'General Chat',
'Guarana sodas', 'Other Guarana products', and 'Weight Loss'. We will try to import all
relevant messages from the old forum before we put the new system online.
Facelift
October 14, 2001 - As you probably noticed already, Guarana.com underwent a facelift.
Apart from the new design, easier navigation, search capabilities, and new topics, we now
offer new services like a newsletter, and a mailing list. Some of the old content is
still here, but most of it has been reviewed again, and brought up to date. During the
next few days, some pages might generate a "Not found" error. We expect to have
all pages up and running around the end of this week.
Launch is a succes, Pepsi says
October 17, 2001 - According to Carla Vieites, Marketing Manager Pepsi Cola Portugal, the
launch of Guaraná Antarctica is going very well, even above expectations. At the time of
writing, Guarana Antarctica already has a good distribution network, as well as a good
awareness. The launch program was strong: media support (TV, radio) from August to
October, sampling, grass routes program, "Guaraná Antarctica parties" with Capoeira demonstrations,
and a good visibility at the points of sale.
Some pictures of the 'Guarana parties', and the
Portuguese Antarctica can.
AmBev launches Guarana in Portugal
July 20, 2001 - Brazil-based AmBev launched its Guarana Antarctica soft drink in Portugal
in what it said was a cautious first step toward its ambition to make the brand a global
player. AmBev, the world's No.4 brewer and No.5 drinks company, said it would invest 12
million reais ($4.7 million) on the launch over the next two years and aimed to win 3% of
Portugal's soft drinks market within a couple of years.
The Guarana drink, which is made from a berry which grows in the Amazon, will be
available in cans and 1.5 liter bottles at 70,000 points of sale across Portugal. AmBev
chose Portugal for the launch because of the close cultural connections and the insistence
of PepsiCo Inc. and Sumolis, who will
bottle and distribute the drink. Pepsi agreed with AmBev in late 1999 to distribute
Guarana across the world. AmBev distributes Pepsi products in Brazil.
Ambev and Pepsico will market Guaraná worldwide
Brazil, October 21 1999 - Brazilian beverage company Ambev and U.S. softdrinks giant
Pepsico announced Wednesday a deal to bottle Brazil's local soft drink Guaraná Antarctica
worldwide.
The announcement was made in the federal capital of Brasília by Ambev co-presidents
Victorio de Marchi and Marcel Telles and Pepsico president Steve Reinemund.
Ambev, or Companhia de Bebidas das Américas, is the result of a recent merger between
the two largest Brazilian drinks manufacturers, Brahma and Antarctica. The merger still
depends on approval by the local antitrust regulatory agency Cade.
Guaraná Antarctica is among the 15 best selling soft drinks in the world, with a
volume of 800 million liters a year. The agreement with Pepsico is expected to catapult
the Brazilian soda into the ranks of the 10 best selling softdrinks within five years.
Guaraná Antarctica will be bottled and distributed throughout the world
by PepsiCo. The signing of an international licensing agreement will be communicated to
President Fernando Henrique Cardoso this Wednesday by the joint Presidents of AmBev
Companhia de Bebidas das Américas, Victório Carlos De Marchi and Marcel Hermann Telles,
and by the President of PepsiCo Inc., Steve Reinemund, during an audience at the Palácio
do Planalto.
The agreement is the first step in the internationalization of AmBev, a company created
on July 1st through the merger of Antarctica with Brahma, forming the fifth largest drinks
company in the world. "It is the taste of Brazil for the world," says Victório
De Marchi, joint President of AmBev and also the general manager of Antarctica, in
reference to the slogan adopted by the new company.
"The unique taste, the fact that guaraná is product of the Amazon region, grown
with respect for ecology and the environment, together with Pepsi’s distribution
reach are all excellent tools to support Guaraná Antarctica’s claim for a slice of
the world soft drink market", says the president of PepsiCo, Steve Reinemund. PepsiCo
is one of the world´s largest consumer product companies, operating in 175 countries. The
company´s worldwide sales in 1998 was US$ 22,3 billions and the operating profit was US$
2,6 billions. The company consists of Frito-Lay, the leader in snack chips; Pepsi-Cola,
the world´s second largest beverage company; and Tropicana Products, the world´s largest
marketer and producer of juices.
The companies plan to launch Guaraná Antarctica in many of the international markets
starting in the second half of 2000. The agreement will be submitted to Cade that is still
examining the merger of the two companies, but it is expected that a favorable ruling will
be announced before the international operation begins. "Obviously, we will not take
any actions that goes against the Cade´s rulings. Cade, as far we can tell from its most
recent decisions, has a modern outlook on the globalized economy and its dynamics, and it
will understand the advantages of this association for consumers and for Brazil,"
believes Marcel Telles, joint President of AmBev and Chairman of Brahma’s board of
directors. Guaraná Antarctica is the leading soft drink in the guaraná segment, with a
25% market share, according to the Nielsen Market Research Institute, reaching a million
points of sale throughout Brazil.
Today Guaraná Antarctica is ranked 15th best selling soft drinks in the world with
annual sales of 800 million liters. It is projected that Guaraná Antarctica will be one
of the top ten soft drink brands worldwide within 5 years of signing of the contract with
PepsiCo. AmBev’s Antarctica division will export guaraná extract from the Amazon to
PepsiCo’s worldwide production and distribution operations. "This contract with
PepsiCo is a concrete example of what Antarctica and Brahma promised when they created
AmBev : we are opening up the external market for Brazilian drinks" says Marcel
Telles. |
