There are specificities that make this relatively new market unique, including bulk home buying, “which can represent from 10% up to 25-30%” depending on the country and a different level of trust required by the consumer. Key markets in the region include Indonesia and China, simply due to their large populations. India, another populous country, “is a little bit more complicated due to the local regulation”.
The topic of value-driven products is “super complicated”. “The flavoured category just doesn’t exist, so the effort to invest behind, to create those kinds of new categories, is just tremendous.” With companies more likely to demand quick return on investment, there is little patience to wait until tastes are developed, even though “on paper” this category should be viable.
The competiveness of the global bottled water market
In terms of the competitive landscape for the global bottled water market mass-market segment, there are two types of company. “You have all local players owned by big companies, like Danone and Nestlé, but it will be less and less the case.” Alternatively, “when you look at China, all the biggest players on the market, like Ganten, Nongfu, they are all local players.”
The discussion also covered key environmental drivers and sustainability in the global bottled water market, as well as whether the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the bottled water industry.
To access all the human insights from Third Bridge Forum’s APAC Bottled Water Industry – Q4 2020 Update & Mid-term Outlook Interview, click here to view the full transcript.
The information used in compiling this document has been obtained by Third Bridge from experts participating in Forum Interviews. Third Bridge does not warrant the accuracy of the information and has not independently verified it. It should not be regarded as a trade recommendation or form the basis of any investment decision.
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