So with the rise of flavoured water, demand for all-natural products and impact of the sugar tax, this launch could be in exactly the right time and place. Supermarket shoppers took home an extra 33.5 million litres of flavoured water over the past year, pushing value sales of still and sparkling up 11.1% and 11.9% respectively to a total of ВЈ211.9m. Cold InвЂ™fuse may not think of itself as a flavoured water, but that is arguably its closest category. The rise of own label and decline of black tea is hitting its core category of tea, which resulted in a loss of ВЈ2.9m in sales last year. If it works, it could prove perfect timing for Twinings. So what weвЂ™re doing is helping consumers with an existing habitвЂќ. As the bags can be added to any type of water, Forster says Cold InвЂ™fuse can capitalise on the growth in tap water consumption, which вЂњno-one is making any money from at the moment. She believes, with the right marketing, people will choose it over ready-to-drink options (which can work out more expensive). вЂњGetting the water bottle seen out and about is going to be critical,вЂќ says Forster. Outdoor advertising will вЂњgo bigвЂќ in July to coincide with the retail launch, with the water bottle working as the main visual alongside the tagline вЂletвЂ™s change it upвЂ™. There will also be a ВЈ4m campaign targeting its audience of millennials, starting with sampling and getting digital influencers to try the product. ThatвЂ™s partly why Twinings decided to launch in out of home first - because Forster believes it is a вЂњgreat breeding ground for people to try new thingsвЂќ. Twinings is setting a fairly premium price at ВЈ9.99 for a starter pack and ВЈ3.79 for 12 bags, which consumers will only pay if they understand the proposition. Cold InвЂ™fuse isnвЂ™t being positioned as a tea (though it will sit in the tea aisle of supermarkets) and neither does it fall squarely into the flavoured water category. Blythe says there is вЂњa hell of an education job to doвЂќ in communicating the concept and getting consumers to choose it over ready-to-drink options. вЂњI think the nirvana of adult drinks that are non-alcoholic, sugar-free and have the added benefit of getting us to drink more water is a welcome addition.вЂќ Plus, now the sugar tax has hit home вЂњanything that challenges the sugary carbonated drinks will very soon profitвЂќ.Д¬hris Blythe, director of the Brand Nursery, agrees Cold InвЂ™fuse вЂњticks all the boxes you would want in terms of being bang on the health trendвЂќ - and gets top marks for sustainability by swapping single-use plastic for a reusable bottle. вЂњWeвЂ™ve got strong equity in being natural and we thought, why not bring that to water?вЂќ she explains.Д«eing natural and sugar-free could indeed chime with todayвЂ™s consumer, says Greg Vallance, executive creative director at brand consultancy Honey Creative. Twinings senior marketing manager Claire Forster says it taps two major trends: an increasing awareness of the benefits of water, but also a desire for added flavour without artificial sweeteners or sugar. It has taken nearly two years to devise a way to make the fruit and botanicals infuse in cold water (using technology itвЂ™s keeping closely guarded), which has given it plenty of time to research demand. ItвЂ™s all very new for a brand steeped in tea and tradition. The rollout will begin in out of home now, with a big bang retail launch planned for July. Twinings is hoping to start an entirely new category with the NPD: cold infusions. There is even a stylish reusable bottle included in the starter pack. The small teabags are filled not with tea but botanicals and small fruit pieces - and designed to release flavour in cold water rather than hot. In fact, Cold InвЂ™fuse would look more at home at a high-end Shoreditch gym than at an afternoon tea. Even more surprisingly, the innovation in question wasnвЂ™t a tea. Yet the brand emerged as the focal point for coffee aficionados last weekend. You wouldnвЂ™t expect the standout innovation from the London Coffee Festival to come from tea stalwart Twinings.

Lumina Intelligence: UK Food & Drink ReportsД¬old InвЂ™fuse comes in three flavours: Watermelon, Strawberry & Mint Passionfruit, Mango and Blood Orange and Blueberry, Apple & Blackcurrant.

Twinings cold infuse tea