Squeeze Sparkling Water: Upcycled Innovation Meets Bold Packaging Design

Booch Organic Kombucha, one of Ontario's first successful commercial kombucha brands, expanded into sparkling water with an innovative sustainability mission. Previous owner Shannon Kamins discovered that lemongrass used in kombucha production retained essence after its first pressing, inspiring the creation of Squeeze—a zero-calorie sparkling water made from upcycled ingredients.

Eye Candy Design developed packaging featuring a bold colour palette and graphics that underlined the refreshing, bright flavours while staying true to Booch's ethos of sustainability, local collaboration, and grounded values.

CLIENT: BOOCH KOMBUCHA

• BRANDING

• PACKAGING DESIGN

The Challenge

Communicating Innovation in Crowded Sparkling Water Market

The sparkling water category has experienced explosive growth, with Americans consuming nearly 60 gallons of water yearly—a dramatic shift from soda dominance. The market demands vibrant, distinctive packaging while functional beverages incorporating health benefits gain traction. Squeeze needed to stand out in this competitive landscape while communicating its unique upcycled ingredient story and zero-waste mission.

Key challenges included:

• Differentiating a lemongrass sparkling water in a category dominated by traditional citrus flavours

• Communicating the innovative upcycled ingredient story clearly and compellingly

• Aligning the visual aesthetic to the established Booch brand while creating distinct product identity

• Appealing to distributors seeking unique, sustainable beverage offerings

• Showcasing refreshing, bright flavours through bold visual design

• Balancing sustainability messaging with appetite appeal and flavour communication

Our Strategic Design Solution

Bold Colours Meet Sustainability Story

Our packaging design captured Squeeze's refreshing character while prominently featuring the brand's waste-reduction innovation. The solution honoured Booch's established ethos while creating an exciting new product line.

Bold Colour Palette Strategy

Vibrant Refreshment: We developed a bold, eye-catching colour palette that immediately communicated the bright, refreshing nature of the sparkling water—standing out in crowded beverage coolers and retail shelves.

Flavour Differentiation: Each variety—Grapefruit, Lemon, and Seabuckthorn—received distinctive colour treatment that signalled flavour while maintaining cohesive brand recognition across the product line.

Market Standout: The vibrant colours positioned Squeeze to compete in the sparkling water category where brands benefit from "refreshing packaging" and "vibrant, edgy, colourful packaging design" that compels consumers to choose their products.

Upcycled Ingredient Communication

Prominent Banner Feature: A distinctive banner showcased the "upcycled ingredients" story, making the sustainability innovation immediately visible and compelling to both distributors and consumers.

Zero-Waste Messaging: The packaging clearly communicated how Squeeze extends lemongrass flavour from kombucha production, reducing waste while creating a delicious zero-calorie beverage.

Sustainability Authenticity: The design reinforced Booch's authentic commitment to sustainable beverage company practices—not greenwashing, but genuine waste reduction through innovative product development.

Brand Ethos Alignment

Typography and Graphics: Design elements stayed true to the Booch brand ethos—grounded, collaborative, and sustainable—while establishing Squeeze as a distinct product offering with its own personality.

Local Partnership Values: The visual identity reflected Shannon's philosophy of staying grounded and being highly collaborative with local Ontario partners.

Cohesive Brand Extension: The packaging maintained enough visual connection to Booch Kombucha to leverage brand equity while differentiating Squeeze as a unique sparkling water line.

Results & Distribution Success

Distributor Enthusiasm and Market Reception

The Squeeze packaging design achieved immediate market validation through distributor response:

Unprecedented Distributor Interest: The Western distributor immediately picked up the product, citing the label was exciting enough to generate solid sales.

Packaging-Driven Sales: The distributor was "specifically thrilled with the label—he loved the colours, and the banner showcasing that we use 'upcycled' ingredients"—demonstrating how packaging drove distribution success.

Category Innovation: Squeeze successfully introduced lemongrass to the sparkling water market, a traditionally citrus-dominated category, through packaging that made the unique flavour profile appealing and understandable.

Sustainability Leadership: The prominent upcycled ingredient banner positioned Squeeze as a sustainability leader in the functional beverage market, where consumers increasingly seek brands aligned with environmental values.

Brand Extension Success: The packaging maintained Booch brand equity while establishing Squeeze as a distinct product line, supporting Shannon's business growth without diluting the original kombucha brand.

Key Insights for Sustainable Beverage Branding

Upcycled Story as Differentiator: In crowded beverage markets, authentic waste-reduction stories create compelling differentiation—particularly when communicated prominently through packaging design.

Bold Colours Work for Sparkling Water: While flat water brands often convey cleanliness through minimalism, sparkling water "gets the chance to play more with vibrancy and distinctiveness"—bold colours capture attention and communicate refreshment.

Sustainability Requires Clarity: Environmental innovations must be clearly communicated through packaging—the upcycled ingredient banner made Squeeze's sustainability story immediately understandable and compelling.

Innovation Attracts Distributors: Unique flavour profiles backed by sustainability stories create distributor enthusiasm, particularly when packaging effectively communicates both product innovation and environmental values.

Brand Extension Balance: Successful line extensions maintain enough visual connection to leverage parent brand equity while establishing distinct identity for new product categories.

Market Context: Zero-Waste Innovation

Authentic Circular Economy

Squeeze represents genuine circular economy thinking in beverage production. Rather than disposing of lemongrass after kombucha production, its creator recognized remaining essence could create an entirely new product line. This approach exemplifies authentic sustainability—reducing waste while creating consumer value.

The sparkling water market's growth trajectory supports innovative entries like Squeeze. As consumers shift from soda to water for health reasons, they seek beverages with compelling stories, unique flavours, and authentic sustainability credentials. Squeeze delivers all three through its upcycled ingredient innovation.

Conclusion

Squeeze Sparkling Water demonstrates how packaging design can successfully launch innovative brand extensions in competitive beverage markets. By developing a bold colour palette that communicated refreshing brightness while prominently featuring the upcycled ingredient story, we created packaging that excited distributors and positioned Squeeze for market success.

The Western distributor's enthusiastic response validates the design's effectiveness. The colours captured attention, the banner communicated sustainability innovation, and the overall design stayed true to Booch's grounded, collaborative ethos.

Most importantly, the packaging supports Kamins' authentic commitment to sustainable beverage production. Squeeze isn't sustainability marketing—it's genuine waste reduction creating a delicious zero-calorie sparkling water. The packaging tells this story clearly, compellingly, and with the vibrant visual impact needed to succeed in today's competitive beverage market.