Coconut Water Survey

Comments & Recommendations

The results of the survey show that some 78% of the population between the ages of 18 and 55 or an estimated 1,220,000 persons consume coconut water. 35% of these consumers or an estimated 435,000 individuals consume Bottled Coconut Water of which 57% were Female and 47% Male. 75% of all consumers of Bottled Coconut Water were White Collar Workers earning an average of between $95,000 - $120,000 monthly who purchased their product mainly in Supermarkets. This indicated that it was the Blue Collar Workers who tended to consume Natural Coconut Water mainly straight from the coconut, from roadside Vendors Based on the data the average consumption per individual was 1.01 glasses, measuring 10 oz per day. 42.4% or 184,500 individuals of the 435,000 consumers who drank bottled water consumed it 2 3 times per week. 46.2% of these individuals drank 1Litre, 41.8% drank 295ml and 12% drank 3.89 litres. When This meant that a total of 70,100 cases of 12 x 1 litre were sold on a monthly basis. 39,000 cases or 55.6% was bought through retail outlets while 31,100 was purchased from the CIB (Please refer to slide 17 for further details) Older Males, tended to drink Bottled Coconut for the perceived health benefit which was the regulating of the entire system as did as did younger Females. Younger Males and Older Females tended to drink it because it was refreshing or they just liked the taste What was very interesting is the fact that the single most important purchase determinant was Consistent Quality, which in itself was impacted directly by Shelf Life as taste deteriorated the closer the product came to its expiry date. Again this was reflected in the low ratings received by all brands for Shelf Life What was also noteworthy were the ratings for Packaging, with consumers indicating that Bottled Coconut Water in the same package as Local Bottled Waters was not acceptable. They tended to prefer packaging which was more attractive graphically such as the Grace brand and also thicker containers such as that of Portland Splash. At the end of the data collection period a new brand, Orijin, was launched and although not registering in the survey, received rave reviews by those who had sampled the product, not only for quality and taste , but also for its superior packaging. Of note were the responses received in respect of Brand Affinities where almost 70% of the respondents did not associate themselves in anyway with any of the brands. This therefore presents the opportunity for a major supplier who is willing to take the necessary steps to enter the market and make a big splash and could easily capture majority share of the market