The repackaging rationale, particularly among soft drink manufacturers, is to provide consumers with yet another packaging choice to increase the likelihood of being able to meet whatever beverage need they might have at any given time.
Stephanie Baxter, senior manager of corporate communications at Coca-Cola Ltd. in Toronto, says its launch last year of Coca-Cola Classic, Diet Coke, Sprite, and Barq's Root Beer in the mini can was prompted by customer demand.
"A lot of people are looking for a smaller amount of refreshment than the larger (355-ml or 12 oz) can. [The mini can] is exactly eight ounces. It adds another element where consumers are working on portion control," she says. "A lot of people use it for snacking; they don't want the full can. It's easier for people on the go. I would purchase it and put a can in my lunch. If I was going out, I would take the can with me."
Baxter says Coca-Cola is targeting households with people between the ages of 25 and 49 who are seeking "to improve their snacking and drinking opportunities" when shopping at grocery stores and mass merchandisers, such as Wal-Mart.
"We're looking to be able to provide the consumer with a product in a size that is appropriate for the moment," she says, noting the mini cans are neither chilled nor available in vending machines.
Baxter admits the mini can flies in the face of previous packaging innovations, including the 591-ml and two-liter plastic bottles and the 750-ml and 355-ml glass bottles, which have preached, for the most part, that bigger is better. Coke and Diet Coke are also fountain drink favorites at convenience stores in one- to two-liter sizes.
She says for competitive reasons Coca-Cola doesn't release sales figures for specific sizes, but she notes the mini cans have been moving "really well." "Everyone is pleased with how they're selling and how they were accepted into the marketplace," she says.
PepsiCo is also looking for big things from the mini and now offers Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, and Mountain Dew in the little can. Another soft drink company, Shasta Beverages, is using mini cans for its Shasta Shortz line of caffeine-free soft drinks, which are targeted toward young children. Using a clever double entendre, each can of Bubble Gum, Rah-Rah Root Beer, Camo Orange Creme or Chillin' Cherry Punch features a different pair of surfer shorts as the label.
At the other end of the age spectrum is Joint Juice, which was recently repackaged into a mini can from an 11-ounce bottle. Aimed at older consumers — one of its ingredients is intended to relieve joint pain — the move to the mini can has improved shipping logistics and reduced costs.
Robert Warren, director of the Asper Centre for Entrepreneurship at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, says downsizing is a North America-wide phenomenon hitting industries as diverse as automobiles and restaurants.
He says the trend in beverages is definitely moving away from the bigger-is-better mentality. He's confident there's a very strong correlation between the success of "Super Size Me" — the 2004 documentary in which the filmmaker ate nothing but McDonald's food and put on more than 20 pounds in a matter of weeks — and the move to smaller portion sizes. "I think (soft drink manufacturers) were looking at the concept before the movie came out, but once they saw the consumer reaction, it spurred them on to go much further, much faster," he says.
Warren says many of today's consumers are looking to minimize the number of calories or the amount of caffeine they imbibe through the mini. "A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips," he reminds us.
There's also a party-practical reason for the move to mini cans, Warren notes. "They're much better to use as mix (than the 12 oz cans). They're just enough to top up an eight-once tumbler once you've put your shot (of alcohol) in," he says.
Molson Canada has followed the mini can trend with a pair of its top-selling beers. Across most of the country, it offers a slim 8-oz can — called a "Cold Shot" — full of Molson Canadian, its most popular lager. In French-speaking Quebec, it substitutes with Molson Dry.
"We're always looking for ways to innovate, and packaging is something we've innovated with before. The Cold Shots seemed like a good idea to do something a little bit different, but still with consumers' favorite brands," says Babita Khunkhun, Toronto-based public relations manager at Molson Canada, a division of Molson Coors Brewing Co.
She says Molson has loyal beer drinkers of both Canadian and Dry in its sights with Cold Shots as well as those who prefer other brands.
"It helps bring attention to (Canadian and Dry). People who wouldn't have thought of trying a Canadian might now because of the new packaging. [Molson] did it to bring a bit more excitement to the brands and to attract some attention," she says.
The Cold Shots were not specifically designed for women or calorie-conscious beer drinkers, she adds. "It would provide an option for somebody looking for a smaller serving but I think its appeal is broader. I think it was driven by the packaging more than the smaller serving. It's another way to offer excitement to our existing portfolio," Khunkhun says.
But not everybody is sold on the idea that mini means more. Labatt Breweries of Canada, Molson's biggest competitor, launched 10-oz cans of Labatt Blue and Labatt Lite in the summer of 1990 to lukewarm reviews and has no plans to reintroduce them to the market.
"There wasn't huge consumer demand," says James Villeneuve, Labatt's vice president of corporate affairs in Toronto. "There was also another element of trading down on volume that we didn't view as being the best decision. You're always trying to innovate in the marketplace. You don't learn unless you try something."
There were so many of the Labatt mini cans sitting in warehouses and on beer store shelves that the company decided to dump a large percentage of them on Cuba and the Dominican Republic through its Latin American distributor. "We were able to price them to move them quickly," Villeneuve says.
So just how small can cans go? Well, Coca-Cola currently offers a 125-ml can in the UK — it's just a few sips, depending on the size of your mouth — which could make its way across the Atlantic if demand warrants, the company says. What's next? The shot can? The thimble can? If those take off, the Coca-Cola eyedropper can't be far behind.
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