Dive Brief:
- Nestle SA is taking a larger sip of the water delivery business in the U.S. as delivery doubled sales at brick-and-mortar stores in 2014 and tripled brick-and-mortar sales in the first quarter of 2015.
- Nestle's customized Web orders for brands like Perrier and Poland Springs are surging as the company has invested in better software and more packaging options.
- Other major companies in the food and beverage industries, such as Costco Wholesale, Coca-Cola Co., and PepsiCo Inc., are all competitors in home water delivery.
Dive Insight:
Consumers want convenience, and as online ordering for food and beverage products takes hold, it's only natural that water, which can be heavy and cumbersome to bring home from the store, would be another natural outgrowth.
However, plastic bottles face environmentalist criticism, and Nestle facilities in California recently faced protests due to the drought plaguing the state.
U.S. home delivered water still only comprises an estimated 2% of household penetration. But Nestle, the leading bottled water seller in the U.S., made about 20% of its $4 billion in U.S. water sales in 2014.