The “Refresh” in Refreshment: Diabolo Unveils New Packaging

With the term “soda” becoming a liability for beverage companies amid changing consumer habits, California-based Diabolo has unveiled updated branding, repositioning itself as a ‘Sparkling French Lemonade’ focused on taste and refreshment.

Founded in 2010 by former surgeon and French émigré Michel Langlais, Diabolo has long played in the CSD set as a low calorie, craft ‘French Soda’ sold in 16 oz. cans. According to Langlais, the brand was inspired by his childhood memories of drinking “diabolo menthe” — directly translated as peppermint soda. Largely sold in grocery stores on the West Coast, Diabolo was available in four flavors: Blueberry Lemonade, Dragon Fruit Plum, Mint Lemonade and Tangerine Pomegranate.

But earlier this year, ahead of a nationwide expansion push, Diabolo has refreshed its packaging, moving to 12 oz. sleek cans that are more easily consumed in a single sitting, Langlais said. Fitting health-conscious trends, the drinks have been repositioned from sodas to lemonades and the two existing lemonade flavors are now called Blueberry Citron and Mint Citron. The company also added two new SKUs: Acai Berry Guava and Blackberry, Plum, Lime and a Pinch of Basil.

The drinks, which are sweetened with erythritol and 10-11 grams of cane sugar per can, use the same formulation as the previous version and are made with natural flavors and added B vitamins. However the move to a smaller package has reduced the calorie count to 45-50 per unit. The line retails for $1.29 per can and will be available in 4-packs this spring for $4.99.

“We are not bragging about being healthy, we are not bragging about being something which is going to cure a lot of disease. It’s a drink for people who want to have good refreshment but still is not going to fill up your body with sugar and calories,” Langlois said.

According to Michael Larson, executive marketing advisor at Diabolo and founder of One Eighteen Advertising, Diabolo will aim to emphasize the “exotic and fun” flavors in order to develop a lifestyle brand. The company’s key demographic is women and the labelling aims to reflect a “slim silhouette” that emphasizes fruit-forward flavor, bright colors and “personality.”

One new approach from the company has been emphasizing Diabolo’s versatility as a cocktail mixer, in addition to straight refreshment, with the brand putting up several recipes on its website.

“One thing that we talked about was creating social currency for the consumer, when they want to share something that is unique and different,” Larson said. “It’s a special find for a lot of the consumers because it is unique on the shelf. And they like to share that with their peer group, especially when they can say hey, look at this recipe that we have or try this flavor. So that’s where we’re really seeing it excel.”

Since rolling out with the new packaging in January, Diabolo has quickly expanded its retail footprint from about 4,000 doors to over 5,500, with additional activations expected to come online in the coming months. The brand is available along the West Coast, Texas, the Mid-Atlantic and the Southeast in retailers including Kroger, Ralph’s, Bevmo, H-E-B, Albertsons, Randall’s, Food Lion, Weis, Tom Thumb, Shop N Save, SuperValu, Bristol Farms, Meijer and Nugget Markets among others.

According to Michael Galef, chief growth officer and managing partner of 5G Consulting, Diabolo’s retail footprint has grown 40% in committed doors since January and velocities have increased 30-40% per store. The launch of 4-packs this spring, he added, is expected to further accelerate sales growth.

Larson noted Diabolo will focus on account-specific marketing and digital campaigns to promote the rebrand. As ACV increases, particularly on the East Coast, he said the brand will focus more on increasing brand awareness and consumer marketing efforts. Galef noted the company has been conservative in its spending and has emphasized working closely with retailers rather than spend wantonly on advertising, but hopes to launch education campaigns in the near future.

“If you look at our brand strategy, we’re trying to cross the chasm in terms of getting our consumers to utilize the product more and the 4-packs are going to be helping us in our purchase occasion,” Galef said. “Then that chasm will start to cross as they’re telling other people, so we’re going to count on our flavor profiles to go there.”