Finance

MARKETING INFORMATION

THE HISTORY

In 1982, Dietrich Mateschitz came up with the idea of marketing energy drinks – which were then already quite widespread in Southeast Asia – while sitting in the bar at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong.

In 1984, Mateschitz founded the company known as Red Bull. In 1987, he started selling the energy drink Red Bull on the Austrian market. Red Bull got off the ground in no time, giving people ‘wiiings’ right from the start. In 1992, Red Bull touched down in its first foreign market, Hungary and in 1995 it was launched in the UK, which is now one of its largest markets.

This marked the birth of an all-new product category. Today Red Bull is the worldwide synonym for ‘Energy Drinks’ and is energising over 140 countries across the globe with close to three billion cans of Red Bull consumed each year (a list of countries can be found at www.redbull.com). Responsibility for the unparalleled success of the world’s No. 1 energy drink is shared by the company's over 3,100 employees, of whom around 250 work at Red Bull Headquarters in Fuschl am See, not far from Salzburg in Austria.

Since its launch in the UK and Ireland in 1995, Red Bull has undergone a phenomenal growth period with sales growing from 8 million to well over 300 million. Red Bull remains the market leader in the UK (functional energy drinks market.)

WHAT EXACTLY IS RED BULL?

Red Bull is a non-alcoholic drink with key ingredients, which have a proven revitalising effect on mind and body. Red Bull is a ‘functional energy drink’ and therefore unjustly classified among the soft drinks, colas and isotonic mineral beverages. The Red Bull effect results from a combination of two natural substances and vital metabolic transmitters - the amino acids taurine and glucuronolactone - with stimulating caffeine, vitamins and carbohydrates. The effectiveness of Red Bull has been proven by a large number of scientific studies. Its function is not to quench thirst, but...