Looking back at Japan's energy drink boom

The Energy Drink Boom Was an Unusual Surge

In 2014, numerous news stories reported that the energy drink market was rapidly expanding and would grow to a scale of 40 billion yen by the following year. Japan's major beverage and food manufacturers started releasing energy drinks one after another.

When carbonated drinks, which usually cost around 100 yen, could be sold for 200 yen in smaller sizes, any manufacturer would jump at the chance.

Led by Red Bull and Monster Energy, Rockstar also joined the market, and the three global brands became available in Japan, which clearly signaled the beginning of a bubble. At the same time, brands like Nordic Mad Clock and domestic products such as Beast Eye, Raijin, Samurai Do, and Joma were quickly released. (Except for Mad Clock, all of these have now disappeared.)

Amidst the already bustling energy drink scene, major manufacturers continued releasing new products. During the peak of the boom, even ReGain joined the market. It was more of a nutritional drink that hadn’t fully transitioned into an energy drink, which was quite noticeable. There were also energy versions of popular juice brands and even horrible-tasting carbonated coffee, creating a feeling of "anything goes."

The Fun Period of Domestic Hunting

Even though we said, "Another weird one has come out," new and obscure products weren’t available everywhere like major brands, and the number of stores selling them was quite limited. It was fun searching through convenience stores, supermarkets, liquor stores, and discount shops, which reminded me of the energy drink hunting I did in America (*´艸｀*)

In America, energy drinks were so plentiful that it would take visiting several stores to find what you wanted. There was also the thrill of uncovering hidden gems, which reminded me of Japan’s energy drink boom. In Japan, it was simply a case of products not being widely distributed, but that in itself made it exciting.

The Surge in the Number of Energy Drink Enthusiasts

The "Energy Drink King" started using Twitter just before the energy drink boom in Japan. It was a simple desire to get a little recognition for the site.

Back then, there weren’t many people deeply immersed in the energy drink world. If we were to use the term "enthusiast," it would probably have been zero.

As I tweeted about daily energy drinks and site updates, more and more energy drink enthusiasts emerged, and it became a trend to create separate accounts dedicated to energy drinks, which was characteristic of the peak of the energy drink boom.

The 2014 Monster Energy Gear Campaign incident was a particularly intense moment. The overwhelming number of applications led to a server crash, and the subsequent response was messy, causing quite a bit of backlash. When the Monster Energy site went down, people kept asking "Energy Drink King" for answers, which was quite a situation!

By around 2015, several energy drink-related blogs started emerging. It was a natural flow for people who wanted to express their love for energy drinks.

In contrast, there were many articles that treated energy drinks as "strange products" and articles about how "energy drinks are dangerous," all of which contributed to the growing excitement about energy drinks online.

Single-Release Energy Drinks Appeared One After Another

While I could clearly feel the energy drink boom, on the other hand, the market was primarily dominated by Red Bull and Monster, and most of the products released by Japan's major companies were short-lived.

After the explosive boom, manufacturers that missed the wave began releasing one-off energy drinks here and there. By the summer of 2015, I could already sense that the energy drink boom was starting to fade (even though new products were still being released).

Products like Kairos, Enajie, CC Lemon, and Real Power started appearing at that time. When Focused ReGain launched that summer, I felt that the boom had already ended. This was because it was around this time that surplus stock was overflowing at absurdly low prices.

Unpopular Energy Drinks Sold at Huge Discounts

One symbol of the energy drink boom was that products released just a few months earlier were being sold at massive discounts, often at less than half their original price, in discount shops. Items that had been sold for 200 yen were now being cleared for 50 yen, 30 yen, or even 20 yen.

You can also see the same trend with discounted items like Choppuru in the past.
⇒2015 Energy Drink Clearance Sale Log

Those who were deeply into energy drinks during this time must have rejoiced at the flood of discounted products. By 2017, there were no longer enough energy drinks to be discounted in such quantities, and it became rare to see massive clearance sales.

The End of the Energy Drink Boom

The once-crowded market began to shrink, and even Rockstar quietly disappeared completely. This could be partly attributed to poor marketing strategies. Such a waste... (ヽ´ω`) When I saw the last remaining Rockstar in a DyDo vending machine, I was really disappointed. Rockstar often showed up in DyDo vending machines at the end.

Furthermore, Red Bull’s Summer Edition initially came in two sizes, 250ml and 185ml, but the following year it was only available in the 185ml size. Eventually, it was sold off for just 19 yen per can (I bought six cases!), and from then on, no other flavors were released except the original.

Also, Coca-Cola's Burn, which had a unique berry flavor early in the energy drink boom, has recently become almost impossible to find, and the product has quietly been discontinued from their official site.

ReGain, which made a big splash with a press release and research data, completely failed to make an impact. By 2017, Taisho Pharmaceutical's Raijin was renewed and looked good, but then it shifted from being an energy drink to a small, high-priced product aimed at workers.

As the boom calmed down, many blogs stopped updating, and I don’t think there’s a blog that’s still active today.

Unlike blogs, Twitter accounts dedicated to energy drinks became more dormant, and individual accounts saw a decrease in energy drink-related posts. The energy and excitement seemed to fade. However, compared to the boom period, energy drink enthusiasts are still very much active today.

Will the Energy Drink Boom Come Again?

As for whether the energy drink boom will return to Japan, honestly, I think it’s unlikely.

Recently, there have been fatal accidents due to caffeine in Japan, fake news about deaths caused by excessive Red Bull consumption has spread, and dangerous articles about energy drinks are often shared online, leading to a poor image.

Additionally, the idea of spending 200 yen on an energy drink from a brand you don’t know seems unreasonable. The "clearance sales" and the fact that Red Bull and Monster dominate store refrigerators make it difficult for any new brands to break in.

In the end, people are fine with Red Bull and Monster, so those two brands will continue to grow the market (^_^;)

I’ve come to realize that domestic manufacturers are unlikely to build strong, long-lasting brands after releasing products (as long as they sell decently in the short term), so the balance between these two dominant brands likely won’t be disrupted. In fact, it would be close to a miracle if a new, attractive brand were to emerge (^_^;)

Regarding whether the energy drink boom will return, that’s how I feel. However, there are still manufacturers independently selling energy drinks, and I believe each of them is finding their own path. Even if a large-scale boom doesn’t occur, I don’t think energy drinks will ever be reduced to just Red Bull and Monster.

What’s the Situation Now (as of 2017)?

Overall, the energy drink boom seems to have ended, and things have completely settled down. However, it doesn’t feel like interest has completely waned, so I think as long as the two dominant brands continue to thrive, we’ll be okay.

In terms of the energy drink world, domestic products have become quieter, and buying has shifted to international products, creating a different atmosphere compared to the boom period. There seems to be a bit of a temperature gap between the casual fans and the hardcore enthusiasts who spend money on it.

During the boom, everything blended together to create a big movement, but recently, things have settled into a more individualistic pace. Manufacturer giveaways have also become a bit stale, and the excitement has diminished.

So, I’ve just quickly reviewed the incredible rise and current state of Japan’s energy drink boom! I’m curious to see what will happen next in Japan’s energy drink market ((o(´∀｀)o))