Bolt Coffee is India’s 5 Hour Energy
Where an Indian brand does ‘cut copy paste’ of an American brand
Where an Indian brand does ‘cut copy paste’ of an American brand
Bolt Coffee shots is unlike other coffee based products such as bottled cold coffee, cold brew or instant coffee. 60 ml coffee shots are energy drinks. Each bottled shot is low in calories (less than 8 calories) and without sugar. It’s a copy of an American brand- 5 Hour Energy.
Before launching Bolt Coffee shots Vishaka Shah, Anisha Shah and Jatin Gujrati had founded Rudra Coffee. Jatin had discovered cold brew in his gym. They traveled to coffee plantations. They also did a coffee course at the coffee board of India. They started with selling cold brew coffee in Hyderabad.
The original energy shot brand- 5 Hour Energy was Manoj Bhargava’s brainchild. He formulated a caffeine based energy drink in 2003. Its annual revenue is about $ 1bn ( INR 7500cr). It commands about 97% of US market. The flagship product has 6 variants ( Berry, Grape, Citrus Lime, Orange, Pink Lemonade, Pomegranate). Bolt Coffee shots have similar flavours.
Indian energy drink market may cross INR 2500cr by 2021. Red Bull is the current market leader with 89% market share. Pepsico, Cafe Coffee Day and Parle Agro have failed in launching successful energy drink markets. There is an opportunity for new drinks and businesses.