PepsiCo to ‘shake up’ sparkling water category with new launch ‘bubly’

bubly – which PepsiCo says brings ‘an undeniable pop of personality to the sparkling water category’ – is free from artificial flavors, sweeteners and calories.

Eight flavors are being launched across the US this month: called grapefruitbubly, limebubly, strawberrybubly, orangebubly, lemonbubly, applebubly, mangobubly and cherrybubly.

The drinks are available in 12oz cans and 20oz bottles.

‘Innovation from within’​

PepsiCo says the launch of bubly emphasises its commitment to its water portfolio, along with supporting its goal for two-thirds of its global beverage portfolio volume to contain 100 calories or fewer from added sugar per 12oz serving by 2025.

It launched premium bottled water brand LIFEWTR in February last year and also owns Aquafina (which produces a flavored sparkling variant).

Todd Kaplan, vice president, water portfolio for PepsiCo North America Beverages said: “When we looked at the sparkling water category, we saw an opportunity to innovate from within by building a new brand and product from the ground up to meet consumer needs. ​

“We created ​bubly​ to provide consumers with a great-tasting, flavorful, unsweetened sparkling water in a fun, playful, and relevant manner that is unlike anything we’ve seen in the sparkling water category today.”​

PepsiCo's beverage portfolio includes global brands such as Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola and Tropicana.