CRESCENT PUREHarvard Business Case Analysis

Portland Drake Beverages Overview

• Manufacturer of organic juices and sparling water• Successfully managed to make 120.5m in revenue in 2012• Main focus of the company towards Quality and Affordability

Players Involved• Michael Booth – Chief Executive Officer, Portland Drake

Beverages(PDB)• Sarah Ryan – Vice President of Marketing, Portland Drake

Beverages(PDB)• Peter Hooper – Founder of Crescent Pure

SituationPortland Drake Beverages

acquired Crescent to expand into the rapidly growing functional beverage segment in order to

maximize revenues.

Decision To Be MadeEnergy Drink Positioning Vs Sports Drink Positioning

Factors that influence the decision1. Living up to the brand image of PDB2. Market Share3. Competitors4. Customer Response5. Price point6. Uniqueness

Sports Drink1. Pros• Attracting a wide range of customer base• Regular usage of sports drink than an energy drink• Market share is 6.3 billion

2. Cons• Crescent’s price point $2.75 is significantly higher than other

sports drink of the same quantity• Recent government rules of restricting sugar and high calorie

drinks from schools and educational institutions posed a threat to the sports drink area.

Energy Drink1. Pros• Contains less sugar and caffeine content comes from natural herbs

making the product unique unlike other energy drinks.• Growth in market for energy drinks (About 40% growth in 2012-

2013)• The average price point of an energy drink is $2.99 whereas that of

Crescent is $2.75 which could provide a boost in customer base.

2. Cons• Consumption of energy drinks has lowered after media attention

towards health risks.• Only 32% customers claim that they have consumed an energy

drink in the last 6 months• Some young customers think that Crescent has less energy than the

other competitive energy drinks.

Final Verdict

Organic

Energy

Organic Energy Drink

Crescent Pure needs to be positioned as an organic energy drink which is healthier than the other energy drinks.

Customer Response

35% of the customers found Crescent Pure to be

Pricing Strategy

Manufacturer Distributor Retailer18% 25% 40%

$1.24 $1.64 $2.75

Crescent pure, on strategizing as an organic energy drink can turn out to be a massive success for the following reasons:

• Consumer perception about Crescent aligns well with an alternate choice of a energy drink

• There are lesser leading competitors with similar drink characteristics• They have strong points of difference as a energy drink due to their

organic certification• They can position it at $2.75 which is lower in comparison to the

average price of energy drinks• Portland Drake Beverages is an established organization with an

efficient workforce and latest technology in order to produce the best possible drink which uplifts the customer trust on the product.

DISCLAIMERCreated by Prayas Gupta , VIT Vellore , during a Marketing Internship by Prof. Sameer Mathur, IIM Lucknow