Thirsty? There's Water, Bottled Water, Everywhere

Thirsty? There's Water, Bottled Water, Everywhere -- And Much More to Drink Than Consumers Realize, FineWaters Survey Reveals

Overwhelming Majority of Americans Unaware That Branded Bottled Waters Rival Wine in Variety and Number  

During a fine dinner out, your sommelier probably wouldn't hand you a bottled water list -- but he or she very well could. As popular as bottled water is, most Americans figure you can count the brands on two hands.

And those who do are just a tad off base. A new national survey reveals that the overwhelming majority of consumers are unaware that there are a vast number of unique brands to choose when selecting bottled water.

The survey was conducted among 1,208 Americans in mid-September by Synovate for FineWaters(TM) (www.finewaters.com), an independent online publication dedicated to selecting, drinking and enjoying fine bottled water.

When asked how many different brands of water are bottled, 73 percent said fewer than 20 brands, while 83 percent said there are less than 30. Less than four percent of respondents knew the reality: there are more than 2,800 brands of bottled water worldwide, hundreds of them available in the United States. Currently, the FineWaters directory of bottled waters lists more than 400 hundred waters from 15 countries.

Primary grocery shoppers in the household -- roughly half the sample -- were no better informed than the survey population as a whole. The results among that group were virtually identical, with just 3.9 percent correctly saying more than 100 brands of bottled water.

"Bottled water is now a $9 billion business, but we should not consider bottled water a commodity," said Michael Mascha, PhD, a FineWaters principal and food anthropologist, who has been studying bottled water and its consumption for the past two years. "In fact, bottled water, like wine, has its unique identity which is defined by its origin -- whether springs, wells or glaciers. Bottled water deserves some intelligent attention and a prominent place on our tables.

"Every fine bottled water comes from a certain place and has a unique story," Mascha said. "Paying attention to the differences in bottled water can be an epicurean delight if water is paired with the right food, served in the right stemware and enjoyed at the right temperature. It's unfortunate that the bottled water drinker is exposed to only a few of the major brands -- but FineWaters' goal is to change that."

Other survey findings of note:

-- Younger consumers are less bottled-water aware. Despite their hip, in-the-know image, younger consumers are more likely to believe there are fewer brands of bottled water than are their elders. Approximately 61 percent of those ages 18 to 24 said there were fewer than 10 brands of bottled water.

-- Older consumers are more "bottled water savvy." By contrast, those ages 55 to 64 emerged as the most knowledgeable age group, although not by much; 5 percent said more than 100 brands, against 3.5 percent overall.

-- Those with higher incomes are twice as aware. Those respondents in households with incomes in excess of $75,000 were most likely (5.4 percent) to indicate there were more than 100 brands of bottled water -- about twice as many as any other income group.

-- The Northeast has highest awareness. Those living in the Northeast exhibited the greatest level of bottled water awareness, on a regional basis. Northeasterners were least likely to identify 10 or fewer brands -- 45 percent vs. 52 percent for the entire sample. Some 6 percent correctly put the total at more than 100 -- twice as much as the rest of the survey population.

-- Higher education means greater bottled water awareness. Education also correlates to increased bottled water awareness: nearly 7 percent of those with post-graduate degrees placed themselves in the "100+ brands of bottled water" camp, a greater number than high school and college graduates combined.

An Equal Opportunity Beverage

"The results of this survey don't mean that high income Northeasterners who are in the 55 to 64 age range and have a graduate degree are the only ones who drink bottled water," Mascha said. "It only means that this demographic group is more aware of the large number of different brands of bottled water. Bottled water is an equal opportunity drink -- everyone drinks and enjoys fine bottled water. The survey makes the lack of availability of different bottled water brands abundantly clear."

When only a few brands are available, that's all the consumer believes is on the market, Mascha explained. In truth, there are thousands of brands of bottled water worldwide, albeit some with very limited geographic distribution.

FineWaters receives e-mails daily from consumers asking where they can purchase specific brands of water. "Many times the fine water drinker has traveled out of the country or even out of his or her own geographic area and found a new water that has become a favorite," he said. This lack of variety in stores and restaurants is something Mascha hopes to see change through the FineWaters online publication.

Since its introduction in May 2003, FineWaters has become the Internet's most influential Web destination on bottled water and the authoritative source for water connoisseurs and their accompanying lifestyle. Exclusive editorial, exhaustive research and a comprehensive interactive guide to bottled water from around the world make FineWaters the starting place for learning more about fine bottled waters.

A copy of the raw survey data and an Excel chart graphing the data are available by email at ken@edgepress.com.

ABOUT FINE WATERS

FineWaters (www.finewaters.com) is an online publication dedicated to selecting, drinking and enjoying fine bottled water. FineWaters is the elegant destination and authoritative voice for the fast emergence of water connoisseurs and their accompanying lifestyle. With exclusive editorial, exhaustive research and a keen attention to the epicurean life, Fine Waters provides a thorough and interactive guide to the bottled water products, places, events and passion that define fine living. FineWaters also publishes a monthly e-mail newsletter, The Water Connoisseur, available to all fine water drinkers.

Contact:
Edge Communications, Inc.
Ken Greenberg, 818-719-9292
ken@edgepress.com