Gatorade

Before Gatorade water was the only sports beverage. After Gatorade was introduced, the so called "Thirst Quencher" proceed to dominate if not define the market for many years before any rivals could even hope to challenge them. These days the market is saturated. It seems like every year there is a stadium full of companies peddling new drinks purported to enhance athletic performance. But amidst contenders for the throne, the old veteran still reigns supreme. However, as a likely attempt to stay current and hold their market share, Gatorade has refreshed its image. Now sporting a much more transparent label like many of those we have seen in the vitamin water camp, Gatorade may be vying for an elevated level of perceived purity. Indeed, the lightning bolt is the sole element of color other than the bright color of the liquid itself. Also similar to vitamin water like opponents is the diminutive denotation of flavor. Those observant enough to locate the flavor of a bottle of Gatorade are often rewarded with nothing more than an arbitrary name such as "Riptide Rush". This vague description tends to make it a little too obvious that the flavor of any Gatorade is almost indiscernible without visual cues. More curious is there move to minimize the presence of the company name and focus on a huge letter "G" along with the trademark lightning bolt as the dominant element on opposing sides of the packaging. This may be an effort to seem like a new exciting choice to younger consumers while still holding on to a symbol of their past reputation. Of course, there is the possibility that this new look will end up like the aging rock star who finally cuts his hair to modernize his image, causing him to look considerably older in comparison to the similarly styled younger generation while alienating his loyal fans at the same time.